Boy Like You
by delena4eternity
Summary: The love triangle is taken even farther in this story, with Elena secretly seeing both brothers simultaneously. (who can choose just one?) Little does she know they are seeing each other behind her back as well! Can they work this situation out? Can Elena narrow her choice to one? Can Damon choose between Stefan and Elena? WARNING: slash, incest, overall smuttiness
1. Chapter 1

Never Let Me Go

Elena was still crippled. It had been weeks since the return of her emotions, since she had taken the cure, when no matter how hard she tried to suppress them, keep them out, they had flooded back in. Of course, she was on the rebound, beginning to be able to go a few hours without breaking down, without someone having to save her from some half-hearted suicide attempt, but she remained broken and hysterical.

It was easy to understand, considering she had lost her brother, burned his body and her childhood home along with all her possessions, killed multiple people, hurt her friends, fed on more people than she cared to think about, and committed almost every awful deed in the book. Reliving those moments made her queasy. It was almost like looking at her life from outside her body, for it couldn't have been her, Elena, doing all those horrible things, right? Impossible. Yet it was true, and this crushed her inside.

Truthfully, she was ready to die. It was only the brothers keeping her here, alive. Stefan and Damon were relentless in this pursuit, one of them by her side at all times just in case she decided to slip away to jump off Wickory Bridge or aim a knife at her own heart. She felt lost and alone through all of this, despite her friends immediately returning to her side, even after her horrific treatment of them during her no-humanity stage. In fact, Elena was constantly surrounded by people trying to comfort her, and It was driving her crazy. She knew they meant well, but she really needed some alone time to process the events of the last few months.

She had tried writing in her new diary, releasing some of the overwhelming emotions she had kept bottled up inside, but putting her feelings down on paper only made them more real and painful, so she quit writing altogether. It wasn't the same anyway, for every time she laid eyes on the leather-bound journal, all she could think of was the one she had lost in the fire, years and years of memories gone forever. Catalogued in those pages had been sweet anecdotes about her and Matt, her first innocent kisses with Stefan and her heated night of passion with Damon. She had chronicled so much of her life, and now it was gone, every little sentence about Jeremy, passages from her time before vampires, and all of the craziness that had been the past two years. Therefore, a new diary wasn't a consolation. It was not the book itself, but the words inside she had wanted, but all of that was gone for good.

Sadly, the onset of Elena's humanity had been quite abrupt. With Stefan the change had been gradual, until he finally came to accept that he felt again, whereas Elena's emotions had recurred all at once, barging into her mind and taking control until she felt as if her head would explode. Despite Bonnie and Caroline's attempts to solace her, Elena had quickly become withdrawn and antisocial, depressed and frantic.

She really _was_ recovering, though. She was able to laugh the other day and actually have a good time with her friends. She wanted to move on with her life, and was even starting to feel the familiar pulls of love… though there was still the problem of choosing. With Elena human again, the sire bond was broken and her love for Stefan had returned. She realized things could never be the same, could never be as they were before, not after everything that had happened. After Stefan had left with Klaus, things had never really returned to normal, and then Elena had become a vampire and things spiraled even more out of control. The innocent love they had shared could never again be.

The problem was that she still loved Damon too. As a human she had tried so hard to deny it and hide it, but finally, after all this time, she had succumbed and now there was no going back. The feelings that caused the sire bond were completely real, and had only intensified over the course of her vampirism. Elena was thoroughly confused, and felt such guilt wash over her when she would happen upon Stefan's adoring gaze or Damon's hopeful glances, searching for any hint of love, that she would look away quickly before seeing their faces fall. She knew that she should let one of them go, that they were not both needed anymore and that it was unfair to lead them along like this, but she was selfish and couldn't bear to lose anyone else so soon. So she kept the both of them, Stefan and Damon, dreading the day when she would eventually have to bid adieu to one of her true loves.

….

Stefan was tired. So very tired. Elena was finally back to…normal… if that was what was called normal these days. She was obviously still pained, but at least she was human again. That was all that he had set out to accomplish, and that is what he had done. Now it was time for him to leave.

So why couldn't he?

Something was holding him here, like a magnetic force. Love, he supposed. Mystic Falls had been his life for the past couple of years, had been his world. Leaving it, what would he do? What would be his purpose? He felt empty just thinking about it. Everyone he cared about was right here in this little town in Virginia, where all his friends resided. Leaving would be that defining moment, that moment when he could never turn back, never change his mind and throw himself at Elena's feet and beg her to take him once again.

He had, of course, noticed the longing glances she had been throwing him, but he refused to let it sway him. Alas, it wasn't working well considering he couldn't bring himself to leave now. Stefan could not let history continue to repeat itself, though, and he could tell that Damon wasn't willing to leave. He should move on with his life… but just couldn't.

Who was he kidding? He loved Elena and couldn't bear the thought of leaving her for good. And Damon, they were siblings. No matter how much he hated to admit it, Stefan had grown accustomed to his big brother and heck, maybe he even loved him too. Yes, the magnetic attraction must be love. He would have to break it somehow and depart, for he simply refused to ruin the rest of Elena's life as he had already ruined these few years. It was decided: Stefan had to go.

….

Damon wanted. Wanted Elena. He knew it was selfish, but he loved her and wanted her to return the affections. Every day he would stare at her with yearning, silently pleading for her to turn around and confess her undying love, give him a tender kiss, or just do something to show that she still felt for him. All to no avail, of course.

Another concerning matter had arisen, too, with Stefan's proclamations that he was soon to leave.

Damon didn't have the stamina to deal with this problem right now, for the thought of life without his

brother was strangely heart-wrenching and filled him with immeasurable dread. Part of him felt he

would surrender Elena if Stefan would only stay. They were best friends and in all honesty, Damon loved

his little brother and never wanted to be parted again. They were family, after all, and the bonds of

blood ran deep, though he hadn't expected to feel this strongly on the topic. In fact, this was the day he

had been waiting for his entire life: when Stefan would finally give up on Elena and leave her and Damon

alone. Now that it had arrived, though, Damon was on the verge of begging, on hands and knees, mind

you, for Stefan to stay.

Why he was feeling this way was unclear to Damon, and he pondered it with increasing frequency. Stefan's impending departure was drawing closer and frenzy was about to ensue on Damon's part, leaving him utterly confused. How long had he been trying to get rid of Stefan and now he was ready to give up Elena just to make him stay? It all felt rather unnatural…

….

"Stefan…" Elena began hesitantly, biting her lips. "I don't want you to go."

"I'm sorry, Elena, but I've done my job. You're human again and I trust Damon from here on out." How painful it was to say those two names with bags in hand, ready to walk out the door for good. He had come to say goodbye to Elena but could not face Damon. For his brother Stefan had written a note of farewell, thanking him and asking to possibly meet up in a few decades, maybe after Elena's death? Stefan was on the verge of tears thinking about that, the death of Elena, and had to muffle his sniffles with coughs, the thought of not seeing Damon for decades also choking him up. God, why did life have to be so cruel?

"But Stefan I… I can't… I don't know if I can live without you. I can't lose you, not again." Elena said, on the verge of tears herself.

"I know you feel that way, but you'll move on eventually." Stefan faltered, wanting so to comfort her.

"No, I don't think I will." She sighed, hanging her head in sadness. "Stefan, I… I love you."

At that Stefan inhaled a large breath. This was exactly what he had not dared to hope for, had banished from his mind altogether.

"I love you too Elena, you know that. I always will." Stefan confessed, seeming reluctant to take the final step out the door.

A tear began to trickle down her cheek as he turned away slowly, trying as hard as possible to memorize her face. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder.

The emotions were too much, too overpowering. She had to do it. She reached out and grabbed Stefan's shoulder, spinning him around to face her. He seemed surprised, his mouth a perfect "o" as she devoured his lips, crushing their bodies together feverishly, grasping his hips and dragging him in.

Oh God, this was bliss. She now remembered what it was like to kiss Stefan, sticking her tongue into his mouth, warring with his own tongue. The old spark was there and she reveled in it, licking his lips and doing everything in her power to persuade him to stay. She really did love him.

Stefan was taken aback by the kiss and just stood there, shocked, as she thrust her tongue into his mouth. But Elena's kisses had always been intoxicating and it wasn't long before he joined, pressing his body ever closer to hers. He remembered what it was like to peel off her clothes, make love to her, and he craved it again. It had been so long, and he lost himself in the passionate caresses, rubbing his hands up and down her sides. Pushing closed the door he backed her up against a wall and ripped off her t-shirt, revealing perfectly olive skin underneath. She was undeniably beautiful and he worshipped her with his lips, pressing them all over her mostly exposed body.

Twining her hands in his hair she lost herself in the sensations, wrapping her legs around his middle. They had always had such an attraction, but this was different than with Damon. Stefan was more gentle, restrained, and slow. By this point Damon would already be roughly thrusting into her, groaning into her awaiting lips. Both methods seemed equally effective and pleasurable to her so she enjoyed Stefan's slow, burning kisses on her cool skin. She moaned subconsciously, rubbing her leg up Stefan's thigh.

The moan was what brought him back. That damned moan! He was soon back to his senses and pushed Elena away as if she was a drug, backing into the closed door and opening it hastily.

"I'm sorry, Elena. I love you, but I have to go."

….

"What the hell is this?" Damon growled, slamming the letter down in front of Stefan's face.

"Damon, I told you I was going to leave." Stefan said, exasperated. Just brilliant. He had left his phone at the boardinghouse and, forgetting his hold up with Elena, figured he would have enough time to retrieve it before Damon returned. No such luck.

"Yeah, and you thought you'd leave me this shitty excuse for a goodbye? 'Hope we'll meet again in a few decades'? What the fuck is that about?" Damon was angry. Infuriated, perhaps.

"I knew you'd react like this, that's why." Stefan sighed, trying to seem nonchalant, like he hadn't just made out with his ex-girlfriend and like he wasn't extremely upset by the prospect of leaving Damon behind for an indefinite amount of time.

"Well, what'd you expect? I implore you to rethink this, brother!" Damon pleaded, a hint of panic behind his eyes.

"Damon, I… I have to leave. You know that."

"No you don't."

"Yes I do. It's for the best anyway."

"For who? You, Elena, or me? 'Cause I'm pretty sure Elena would be heartbroken and…well…you know how I feel." Damon trailed off.

"You and Elena, brother. It would benefit you both."

"Yeah right!" Damon sneered, advancing upon Stefan. "Elena needs you right now…I need you right now. Hell, I always need you!" Stefan was now backed up against a wall and Damon was directly in front of him looking rather enraged.

"Stay Stefan." Damon whispered in his ear, now pressed right up against him. "You'll know what it's like to be brothers again."

"What about Elena?" Stefan asked, sure that this question would deter Damon. He was wrong.

"Let's just forget about her for now. It's always been you and me, brothers through eternity. I want to keep it that way." Damon was now cupping Stefan's cheek, stroking it and gazing deep into his eyes. Stefan was entranced, held in thrall by the bright blue orbs glistening in front of him, feeling electricity as the slender fingers grazed his skin.

Damon began to lean in, their lips almost touching, until he pulled back abruptly, thoroughly confused by that intimate display of affection, so unlike him. Clearing his throat he backed away.

"Just think on it Stefan. Don't leave. But if you do, make sure to tell me first." At that, Damon walked briskly out of the room.

What the hell had that been? Had he seriously been stroking his brother's cheek? _Jeez, I really have gone soft_ Damon thought, hurrying away from the room. _Was I really about to kiss him? No….at least, I don't think so…_Damon speculated. Shaking his head, he went to the only place he could go to help with Stefan: Elena's house.

To Be Continued…


	2. Chapter 2: With a Taste of Your Lips

With a Taste of Your Lips

_***So, this chapter is pretty short and mostly just smut at the end. Another piece of writing done pretty late at night so I hope it doesn't disappoint. There will be some sex towards the end and some slashiness/incest as well, though that will not include sex. Just thought I'd warn ya. Please enjoy and review if you like!***_

A few weeks later…

Stefan stayed. It was inevitable. Both Damon and Elena had come together, pleading for him not to go, and he just couldn't resist them, no matter how hard he tried. In fact, he had already decided to stay before they teamed up on him, though whether it had been Damon or Elena that ultimately persuaded him he was unsure. Nevertheless, here he was, still living at the boardinghouse with Damon, still pining after Elena.

After that initial kiss, Elena had backed off, almost pretending as if it had never happened. He didn't blame her, for he knew how hard it was to sort out your emotions after turning them back on, but he couldn't deny he was hoping for something more, had been yearning for even just an encouraging smile. But nothing.

On the bright side, she was feeling a lot better lately, finally getting back into the swing of things. Now that she had reached this point, he was hopeful that her feelings for him would rekindle and they could start over fresh.

But this left him worried about Damon. Damon, who had begged him to stay, even offered to forget Elena. Damon who was content with just being badass brothers again. What would Damon think if he knew about his kiss with Elena? If she chose him over Damon? It left Stefan feeling guilty, wishing Elena didn't have to choose, that there was someone out there for Damon.

But she did have to choose and he did lover her, despite the fact that he knew Damon did too. History would always just keep repeating itself.

…...

Thank God Stefan hadn't left. Elena might have died on the spot if he had. She was pleasantly surprised that Damon had been on her side too, for she had assumed he would be overjoyed at having her all to himself. Instead he had been even more insistent than her, seeming in something of a panic at the thought of Stefan leaving. Of course, they had had each other for 100 some odd years and only recently had they grown close again. Damon literally had nobody else in his life except for her and Stefan, so the prospect of losing one of them was most likely simply too much to bear.

She hadn't told him about the kiss and didn't plan on it, frightened of hurting him and also because it had been a move made in desperation. She still felt that attraction to Damon as well and therefore wasn't ready to make her final choice. Not yet. Probably never. Was one ever ready to let someone they loved go? Especially when that one had already lost so much in their life?

She pulled into the Salvatore's driveway, not positive of the exact reason she had driven there, blaming boredom.

Knocking on the door, Damon opened it and grinned, smirking down at her.

"Well hello Elena, how nice to finally see you again."

After they had joined forces to make Stefan stay, Elena had seen Damon hardly at all. They hadn't even spoken to each other. This was not out of malice or anger, she had just been trying to avoid the possessive gazes of both brothers, hoping to sort out her own feelings. It hadn't worked.

"Is Stefan here?" Elena asked nonchalantly, not wanting Damon to think she was only here for his brother and not for him.

"Actually no, but feel free to come on in and keep _me_ company. I'm bored out of my mind and I'm sure you know how to spice things up a bit, if you know what I mean." He winked suggestively, inviting Elena inside.

So he was in a flirty mood today. Great. Elena loved his arrogant seduction of women, despite her verbal condemnation of the practice. It was sexy and she was attracted to his self-assuredness , but she hoped that she wouldn't have to deal with it today.

Although…

_She_ had been feeling bored and Damon was just so much fun…

….

No matter how much Damon wanted Stefan to remain in Mystic Falls, being cooped up in the same house as him for several weeks with no distractions was almost akin to torture. He loved his brother but good God, the man was about as exciting as a wet dish rag.

Then he had smelled Elena approaching. Smirking he had hopped off the couch with bourbon in hand to answer the door, knowing exactly how this visit would end. Good thing Stefan was out because Damon didn't quite think he'd approve.

He opened the door with his black button-up unbuttoned, hanging limply from his shoulders to reveal his perfectly sculpted chest and abdomen. His pants were sitting deliciously low on his hips and he knew it too, knew how hot he looked, knew that Elena loved every second of it: who wouldn't? Inviting her inside he took her hand and led her to the sofa, sitting down a little too close for comfort.

"So, tell me, what have you been up to?" He asked, leaning in even closer so his breath hit her face.

The small talk was over in roughly two minutes as they began to make out, kissing aggressively and passionately. Ah, Damon remembered this, remembered how eager Elena was. She was a feisty thing in bed, that was for sure. And he felt triumphant, knowing Elena had chosen him over his brother, had chosen to moan his name as he kissed her neck along the protruding vein concealed there.

"Oh God, Damon!" She gasped as he bit in effortlessly, taking only two sips before slipping back out, licking up the wound sensuously so as to send a shudder running up her spine. He knew from experience that she loved to be fed on during sex, that it aroused her in some way. She found it incredibly erotic, which was actually a lucky break because so did he, and he bit in above her collarbone, nuzzling the skin and smearing a few tiny droplets of blood on her chest and his face before licking it away again and healing the wound. They both needed this.

In mere seconds Damon had Elena's shirt off and his cock was stiff as a board. He sucked her nipples and earlobes, nibbling at her perfect skin. And boy, was her olive skin perfect. Damon worshipped that skin, licked at it obsessively so he could taste her, not her blood, but just her. And she was fucking delicious.

"Mmmmmmmm…" Damon moaned, caressing her entire body. "Do you know how much I want to be in you right now?"

"Not as much as I want you, Damon." Elena responded, falling back into their old routine of talking dirty to each other, building the tension greatly before the big release.

"Impossible," he muttered, moving his head to her navel, kissing her down to her waist where he promptly tore off her pants, revealing already soaked panties.

"You're so fucking wet for me right now it's almost embarrassing." He whispered in her ear, his lips brushing it with every word. Elena just whimpered as his fingers began to rub her clit, twirling it in delicate circles, before plunging inside her, her pussy instantly contracting around the intrusion.

"Like you have room to talk!" She shot back. "Your boner is nearly ripping through your pants as we speak."

Damon just smiled and unbuttoned his jeans to release it, the size impressing her every time. He ripped off her undergarments and pushed in abruptly, eliciting a cry of pleasure/pain, for she hadn't been quite ready yet.

"Faster. Harder. Don't hold back." Elena directed, and Damon complied, changing his angle slightly so that he was hitting her perfectly every time.

It was only a matter of moments before they both came, Damon collapsing in a heap on top of a panting Elena, still reeling from the intense orgasm. She hadn't had sex in months and was overcome, nearly forgetting how good it was.

Damon pressed kisses into her spine and along her shoulders, grazing his nose across her body as he did so.

"So, are we, like, back together again?" He asked hesitantly, afraid of ruining the perfect moment, afraid of her answer.

"Damon, I… I don't know yet." Elena uttered, realizing what she'd just done. At least she hadn't gone this far with Stefan. Already she was cheating on him and with his brother, no less. Not that they were technically in a closed relationship, but she still felt like it was a betrayal.

"Let's keep this between you and me." She finally said, pressing her lips to his gently. "I don't want to lose Stefan again, so we have to stay quiet."

"I agree completely." Damon assured her, smirking.

"I mean It Damon." She warned, narrowing her eyes.

"And so do I. I'm just glad you're back." He tapped his finger on her nose and got up, releasing her from his weight. "In the meantime, I think you need some clothes before my saint of a brother returns. I'll be back."

While he was gone Elena had an epiphany: why choose just one brother when you could have them both?

…...

When Stefan returned from hunting Elena was sitting on the couch, sprawled out and comfortable. Damon was gone, having left to do his own hunting mere minutes before. How convenient. Stefan wondered vaguely how long Elena had been here when what she said next froze him in place.

"Stefan, I love you and want to be with you."

What? Where had this come from? Had he missed something? He just stared at her dumbly, uncomprehending. As if to prove her point, she came up and kissed him on the lips, her breath tasting fresh and minty as if she had just brushed her teeth and used mouthwash.

Pulling back Stefan broke into the biggest, goofiest smile ever.

"I love you too Elena. So much you don't even know." And with that, they began to kiss again, more passionately and lustfully, tongues exploring each other's mouths, hands gripping hair and clasping faces. He struggled to control his bloodlust and succeeded, Elena the one to pull back this time.

"I'm so glad we can be together again Stefan. I've missed you so much." She pecked his cheek and began to walk away before turning around. "I also think we shouldn't tell Damon, at least not yet."

"Why?" He asked, confused.

"I don't want to break his heart right now. We just convinced you to stick around and I don't want to have to do the same to him. With all of my own turmoil, I really just don't want to see him fly off the deep end any time soon."

Stefan agreed heartily, exchanging several more sweet kisses before departing. All of this talk of Damon and kissing reminded Stefan of something, though: Stefan's first kiss, way back when him and Damon were human brothers.

_Damon was sitting in his bedroom reading some book, of course a dirty one prohibited by their father, but a book nonetheless. Stefan couldn't help but smile at his brother, ever the rebel._

"_What do you want, Stefan?" The boy asked without looking up from his reading, sounding only slightly annoyed. "This better be something good."_

_At the time, Stefan was only 14 years old and Damon 17, so they were both pretty young, untainted by Katherine and her evil and cruelty. Stefan had recently been on a date and was scheduled for another that night with a girl he had a large crush on, one he had fallen pretty hard for. Damon was only slightly jealous, for he bedded women almost nightly, though the lack of an emotional connection to them always left an empty feeling inside. But Damon loved his brother and was happy as long as he was happy, so he had encouraged this love, giving Stefan helpful advice along the way._

"_I need your advice about something," he said rather sheepishly as if reading the elder Salvatore's mind._

"_Anything brother, just spit it out." _

"_I am planning on kissing her tonight and I have no idea how! I've never kissed anyone before in my life!" Stefan finally blurted, cheeks reddening. Damon chuckled, amused by his brother's humiliation and innocence. "You have to help me!" _

"_Well, you know, just do what feels right to you." Damon shrugged, returning to his reading. How the hell were you supposed to direct someone on the proper method for kissing? Damon himself didn't even know that one._

"_But Damon…" Stefan whined. "I'm scared."_

_Damon sighed heavily and beckoned Stefan inside, motioning for him to close the door._

"_Come here Stef." Damon said, patting a spot on the bed next to him. "You can practice on me."_

_This was the last thing he expected to come out of Damon's mouth, and he nearly did a double take, widening his eyes at his brother's completely serious face._

"_Don't worry, I'm not gonna bite." Damon said, rolling his eyes. "I won't even move. Just do whatever you want and I'll just sit here."_

_It actually seemed like a pretty good idea to Stefan, and he felt a small thrill in his stomach. He was excited as he walked slowly to Damon's side and sat down on his lap where Damon pointed. Tentatively Stefan leaned in and pressed his lips to Damon's, just a slight brush at first, testing the waters. Then some sort of primal instinct took over and Stefan shot his tongue out to trace the outline of Damon's lips before pushing inside, his mouth devouring his brother's. _

_It felt like electricity as Stefan's lips melded to Damon's and the latter began to return the kiss, despite his promise to remain still. Their tongues danced, twining together, each one fighting for dominance. Stefan reached around back and pulled Damon closer, their chests touching, heaving with heavy breaths as they kept going at each other. It was magical._

_Damon reached his own arms around and grabbed Stefan's ass, squeezing it lightly and tugging it closer too so that they were literally pressed as close as possible, causing Stefan to moan into Damon's open mouth. Damon chuckled, his hot breath ghosting along Stefan's skin as he moved his lips to the neck, placing hot kisses along his jaw, down his neck, and back up again. _

_Stefan was in ecstasy, having never experienced something like this before, and began to grind subconsciously against Damon's hips, an erection beginning to strain against his trousers. He ran his hands down Damon's sides and moved underneath the shirt, tracing the hard muscles found there. Damon did the same, reaching under Stefan's shirt, letting his fingers skim along his brother's torso, even emitting a low moan himself. Damon also began to press his hips into Stefan, rubbing against him to create more friction, and Stefan arched his back into Damon from the pleasure of it._

"_Oh Damon," he groaned, kissing his brother desperately. _

_Then, as their bodies continued to move together, Stefan's erection passed over something hard in Damon's pants too, and the ecstasy it shot through his body caused him to pull back and gasp, staring Damon straight in the eyes as he realized that Damon had felt it as well. They gazed at each other for a good five seconds before Damon quickly pushed Stefan off of him and stood up, his cheeks furiously red. He was still breathing hard and his eyes were clouded over with lust, staring down at his brother's rumpled shirt and messed up hair, his raging hard-on. _

"_Well Stefan, that was…very nice. I'm sure the young lady will love it." Damon said after clearing his throat in a low, husky voice. "You should probably get ready for your date."_

_At that he rushed out of the room very quickly, waiting for Stefan to leave before locking himself in for the rest of the night. The next morning Damon acted as if nothing had happened, treating Stefan just like he would any day and Stefan was grateful for it, glad they could go back to being brothers. The incident was never mentioned again, but Stefan never forgot it._

Smiling, Stefan touched his fingers to his lips reminiscently, still lost in the past. That had been his first kiss and to this day, no other kiss had compared. He looked down to see that just thinking about it made him hard, and he went to the bathroom to fix that problem. While doing so he thought of Damon, wondering what it meant that his favorite kiss had been shared with his brother.


	3. Chapter 3: Losing My Head

Losing My Head, Spinning Round and Round

_***Yeah, this chapter is all Defan. Sorry if anyone wanted to see an appearance by Elena, I am just such a big Damon/Stefan fan that that's all I wanted to write today. I can't say this enough: I LOVE THIS PAIRING! There definitely needs to be more stories about them on fanfiction, hence why I'm writing this. Thanks for any reviews btw! Very encouraging and keep me interested in writing. If you like, review for this chapter too!***_

Mmmmmmm. Fresh blood after sex was the best. Damon let the girl drop, unconscious, in a back alley, knowing she would wake up a few hours later with a headache and partial memory loss. The perks of being a vampire. If only Stefan would feed from people. It was so easy, and no one even needed to get hurt. It would also allow Stefan to be a little stronger, not so weak and out-of-control. Damon still wondered why he was painted as the bad guy with no restraint when he was the one that could leave people completely unharmed and alive while his brother was the one either going completely bunny or ripping someone's head clean off. Their head for Christ's sakes. Stefan's lifestyle was clearly not the moral choice.

Nevertheless, apparently Elena had decided she was okay with Damon anyway, so there was no need to dwell on the topic. Thank God the girl had finally come to her senses! Okay, so she didn't technically say they were back together, but the whole 'passionate sex' thing kind of implied it.

Poor little Stefan…what if he decided to leave again? Oh no, what if he was upset, jealous, or angry about Damon and Elena's relationship? Damon just knew he wanted, needed, Stefan to stay, so he decided his relationship with Elena was best kept under wraps. His brother was, well, his brother was everything. Without him, Damon wasn't sure if Elena meant anything at all…

"Stefan?" He called out upon opening the door to their house, looking around with confusion. "Steeefan!"

"Hey!" Stefan answered, rushing down the stairs rather quickly, leaning on the banister with ease and grace. His face was flushed and he was sweating slightly, such a thin sheen that only another vampire would have noticed.

"Where were you?" Damon questioned, wondering why his brother wasn't on the lower level of the building, as was his custom. Stefan never hung out in his room during the day like Damon did, so why was he upstairs? That was how they stayed out of each other's hair: Damon remained upstairs while Stefan remained downstairs. This was some sort of unspoken code between them, and Damon was very surprised to see Stefan had broken it.

"Oh, just in the bathroom, you know…" Stefan trailed off, not elaborating on that particular visit. If Damon found out what he had actually been doing he'd never hear the end of it. Best to keep that private.

"What were you _doing_ in the bathroom you idiot?" Damon said, rolling his eyes.

"What do you think? I was using the bathroom… peeing? Urinating? Do you need me to spell it out for you?" Stefan asked, exasperated. His brother could be such a pain.

Damon's eyes traveled immediately to Stefan's jeans, spying that they remained unbuttoned and unzipped, the smell of fresh cum in the air. Gross. It was quite obvious what Stefan had been doing in the bathroom. And let's just say it wasn't primarily urination…

"Yeah, sure, that really explains the disgusting smell emanating off of you right now, Stefan. You don't need to hide anything from me, you know. You can't hide anything from me. Now what were you _really_ doing in the bathroom?"

"Jesus Damon! You know what I was doing."

"I want to hear you say it. That's all you have to do and I'll stop pestering you. Even let you get back to your… um… business, if you want. Actually, no. Not while I'm here. Too disturbing to think about that."

"Fine! I was _masturbating_ in the bathroom. In yours, to be exact. Happy now? I can't believe you made me say that!" Stefan's emotions were a mixture of anger, humiliation, and continued arousal as he stared at Damon, whose face was screwed up in a mask of horror.

"You were in mine? Why the hell did you choose mine? Great Stefan. Now whenever I go in there all I'll be able to think about is… oh God." Damon shuddered dramatically, smirking at Stefan's embarrassment.

_Why was I in yours?_ _Because it smelled like you and all I could think about was how you smelled that night when we kissed. Over 100 years ago. Your breath, your hands on my face, all of it. Your wonderful smell._

"It was closest." Stefan said lamely, staring at the ground, kicking at invisible dirt.

Damon was having enough fun teasing him, sure, knowing he was uncomfortable with such topics of conversation, and was thoroughly enjoying Stefan's obvious unease. But his eyes kept coming back to Stefan's unbuttoned pants. The smell of arousal heavy in the air. If he could only pull those jeans down a little further, kiss down his chest to his brother's waist, continuing down until he hit… Stop! Hold it right there! What was he thinking? That entire notion was disgusting. It must be the drugs in that girl's blood, making him a little loopy. Had to be. Though his mind kept returning to one particular incident many years ago,,,

_It was a full year after the kiss. Neither one of the brothers had said anything about it and neither one of them had attempted anything similar since. It seemed both were content to pretend it had never happened, resuming their lives as normal. Damon was heading off to war and Stefan was staying behind with their father, Giuseppe, to entertain a young woman who was coming to stay with them by the name of Katherine Pierce. And Stefan hated it._

"_Please Damon, don't go, don't leave me!" Stefan had pleaded as soon as he heard the news. Damon was, for obvious reasons, worried about leaving Stefan alone with their father, who had always taken out his anger on Damon, but otherwise knew he had to go. He swore, though, that if Giuseppe ever touched Stefan, he would kill him. Stefan was his baby brother, and he would protect him with all of his power. Especially against the evils of their father._

_The night before he was supposed to embark, Damon heard a knock at his door. It was faint and unsure, meaning it had to be Stefan. He had merely been packing up the last of his belongings, and sighed deeply before inviting him to come in._

"_We've been living together for 15 years now, brother. I think we're past all the formalities of knocking."_

"_I know, I just… Damon I beg you not to go, not to leave me here. Please."_

"_I'm sorry Stefan. You know I have to go. If I didn't, we both know father would have my head. And I have a duty. I'm a grown man now and you need to learn how to become one. Without me."_

"_But Damon, I don't know what to do without you. I need you. Without you I can't survive, I swear it!" Stefan was starting to cry, fat tears trickling down his still boyish, angelic face. _

"_Oh little brother," Damon breathed, aching for the pain on his face, the tears clouding his eyes. He stepped closer, putting his hand on Stefan's shoulder, giving it a slight squeeze. "Ms. Pierce will be here soon and you'll forget about me. I hear she is beautiful. Perfect for you to bestow your extraordinary kisses on." He winked, giving Stefan a knowing smile._

_Stefan was taken aback, staring at Damon with shock. They had never spoken of their secret kisses that night. Not ever. And now a year later Damon had decided to bring them rushing to the surface once again. _

_Stefan watched as the blue eyes neared his face, drawing closer as Damon pressed his lips to Stefan's cheek, kissing away the tears one by one. As the tears kept coming, Damon kept kissing, his tongue darting out between his lips to lick at the salty water before moving to the next one._

"_You didn't think I forgot, did you?" Damon asked between caresses. "Never, brother, never."_

_Stefan was filled with both sadness and joy, reaching up tentatively to stroke Damon's hair. The strands were soft and pliant, moving easily through his slender fingers. Damon tensed at first, but soon relaxed under Stefan's touch, continuing to kiss Stefan's face as his own hands moved to Stefan's brown, shorter hair. They were both gripping each other's heads, pressing them closer together as if this would be the last time they ever saw each other. And it might be._

_Finally Stefan mustered up enough courage to begin kissing Damon back, brushing their lips together for brief moments, creating soft, gentle caresses entirely different from the reckless passion of a year ago. Damon nuzzled his nose into Stefan's cheek as Stefan moved his kisses to Damon's jaw, down his neck, to kiss his collarbone, until traveling back up again to join their lips. Damon moved his hands from Stefan's head to his chest, drawing him closer so that he could lean forward and nip his younger brother's ear, licking it and kissing it tenderly. _

_Stefan couldn't hold back a moan as Damon did this, arching his back into Damon's strong torso._

"_Shhhhh… we don't want to alert Father." Damon mumbled before resuming his touches, tracing his fingers down Stefan's sides lightly, grasping the hem of his shirt and pulling it over his head. Stefan did the same for Damon then, wanting so badly to touch their naked skin together, feel that electricity. And boy, did they feel it._

_As soon as their firm abdomens collided, Damon moved to straddle Stefan, sitting in his lap, allowing their growing erections to rub together, moaning into his brother's hair as quietly as possible._

"_God Stefan," he breathed, arms encircling his back to hold him ever closer. Stefan rubbed his hands all over Damon's abs, loving the hardness and slimness of his waist, feeling the sinewy muscles of his back, looking into the delirium of his lustful blue eyes, shimmering in the moonlight. He gradually moved his fingers down to Damon's thighs, hoisting them up farther on his own hips, tickling the insides, precariously close to the bulge in Damon's pants, eliciting another moan from Damon, slightly louder this time._

_Damon couldn't help it any longer. He wasn't thinking, just feeling, somewhere in the back of his mind knowing this was wrong, but wanting it anyway. Maybe wanting it _because_ it was wrong. He eagerly moved his hands to the waistband of Stefan's pants and undid the button, but instead of reaching down the front he snaked his hands around back to cup his brother's firm ass, massaging it in time to their kissing. He maneuvered his mouth to Stefan's chest, swirling the nipple with his tongue, delighting in the gasp it induced as he bit it playfully, chuckling just a little as Stefan stiffened when his hands brushed over his entrance accidentally, Stefan's eyes rolling back in ecstasy._

"_Boys?" _

"_Shit!" Damon cursed as he heard his father knock on the door and call for them. He scrambled to throw his shirt back on and cracked the door a tiny bit as Stefan finished re-buttoning his pants and donning his own shirt. _

"_What were you doing?" Giuseppe asked suspiciously, eyes darting from one son to the other. Their hair was still mussed and their cheeks still flushed, panting with the aftereffects of such passion._

"_I was just saying goodbye to ole Stef here." Damon smiled slyly, for some reason hoping his father caught something in his words, their messy appearances, and his smug grin as he leaned arrogantly in the doorway. Stefan just sat there stoically on the bed, hoping to God their father remained oblivious. If he found out… well… Damon would probably end up dead and he in some mental health institution. _

_Giuseppe finally just shook his head and walked away, looking rather confused, making sure to glare at them before leaving as a warning not to do anything… inappropriate._

_Damon turned around and laughed, snickering uncontrollably._

"_Goodbye little brother." He said softly, kissing him hard on the lips, tongue and all, before pulling away with a bittersweet smile and motioning for Stefan to go to his own room. And he did._

The next morning, Damon left for the war. And that was the last time they had ever touched in such a way. And now Damon was once again staring transfixed at the open button of Stefan's pants, wanting to open it and start again. But that was never going to happen. He didn't want it to happen. Stefan was his brother. He had blocked these incidents from his mind for years. And now they decided to come back. He tried to clear them away before his own growing erection became any more noticeable. Stop thinking about Stefan's lips! His tongue! Enough!

"Well brother, I'll leave you to it. Just don't use _my_ bathroom again. That's more than a little creepy."

"Whatever," Stefan shrugged, just glad that Damon seemed willing to drop the topic, He didn't want to have to explain that he only sometimes had these weird thoughts, that he wasn't really attracted to his brother in that way. Not at all.

….

Stefan was sitting in the living room brooding (what else?) when Damon walked in.

"Brother, I have something to tell you."

"What?" Stefan asked, expecting the worst

"I want you."

"Umm… excuse me?" He asked, uncomprehending. Did he just say…?

"I. Want. You."

"I don't think –" Stefan started to say before Damon's lips crashed down upon his own. Where the hell was this coming from? But he wasn't stopping it. Instead he kissed back, letting Damon tear off his pants, stroke his dick, attack every part of his body. Stefan was on fire.

"Oh Damon," he groaned as Damon began to suck his cock. This was perfect. Everything was perfect.

Until he woke up.

_You have got to be kidding me!_ Stefan fumed. Another erection was pushing at his pants. And another weird dream had pushed its way into his precious sleep. Fuck.

He stood up awkwardly and once again shuffled to the bathroom. At least it was his own this time. He began to pump along his cock, begging this to be over with soon. As he neared climax, willing it to come now, who would walk in but Damon. Could this day get any worse?

"Hey little bro! Again? Really? What are you, some kind of sex robot?"

"Just go away Damon." Stefan said angrily, pulling his hand out of his pants.

"Aww, come on! What's wrong with a little brotherly bonding?"

"Is that what you think these dreams you're sending me are? Brotherly bonding?"

"What dreams? What are you talking about Stefan?"

"Don't play dumb with me. I know it was you."

"Now why would I send you erotic dreams? What were they even about anyway?"

In a split second Stefan had Damon pinned to the wall, snarling in his face.

"I said don't play dumb Damon. I don't know what game you're trying to play but you better stop right now."

"I'm not playing any games baby bro! Calm down!" Damon said, leaning in closer to get his point across.

At this Stefan lost control. He pressed in and kissed Damon. Hard. On the lips. Gripping his hips and pressing in close. Damon just stood there shocked for a few seconds before pushing Stefan away harshly.

"What the hell?" He asked, wiping at his lips. Stefan looked up, shocked as well, cheeks turning bright red.

"Well, I guess we know what the dream was about."


	4. Chapter 4: Downfall

Downfall  
_***Hey everyone! Sorry__ for the long wait but I've been busy lately with finishing school and track season, as well as having a serious case of writer's block. But here's what I managed to accomplish so I hope you enjoy it! BTW: I definitely see this moving towards a Damon/Stefan centered story, so just thought I'd warn ya. Please read and review! Every review makes my day :)***_

The look of disgust on his face was almost unbearable to Stefan, who watched helplessly as Damon wiped his taste off his lips. Mortification didn't even begin to describe what he was feeling. He'd just kissed his older brother, basically admitting to having erotic dreams about him, and what did he get in return? A "What the hell?" and anger mixed with confusion twisting Damon's face. This was not good.

But what did he expect, Damon to kiss him back, confess feelings for him, and engage in some incestuous affair? He was pretty positive he didn't even want that himself. There was obviously something wrong with him… Maybe he was drugged. Could vampires get drugged? Or maybe Klaus had compelled him. He was probably having a good laugh about all this with his siblings back home. Or maybe he was just going insane. Stress? He sure had been stressed lately… yeah… blame it on exhaustion, anxiety, anything and everything. Stefan wasn't feeling himself.

"Stefan?" Damon said cautiously inching towards his brother like he was rabid, hands raised in the air as a sign of good intent. Jesus, it was just a kiss! It wasn't like Stefan was dangerous or had an infectious disease or something. Was it really _that_ repulsive?

"Damon, I think you should leave." Stefan said as coldly as possible. Best not to seem affectionate, but angry. Not that _he_ had anything to be angry about. Damon was the victim here.

"Yeah…" Damon said awkwardly, backing away slowly, hands still raised in the air. When he heard the front door slam shut he slid to the floor and put his head in his hands, a pained laugh escaping his lips before turning to dry sobs. He had ruined everything.

….

Damon walked through the woods feeling… confused. Utterly confused. He had just kissed his younger brother. Correction: His younger brother had just kissed him. There was a difference. All he had done was make matters worse by pushing him away and acting upset. He should have been more considerate, maybe talked to Stefan about it. There was obviously something bothering him, but the last thing he had expected was Stefan to press their lips together. That had been… not altogether unpleasant, but definitely unprecedented. Ugh, he needed blood.

….

Elena was sitting at Bonnie's feeling completely bored. In fact, the last place she wanted to be was at Bonnie's, but _her_ house was ashes, so here she was, listening to the witch practice new spells. Maybe she'd go visit Stefan…

When she walked in the front door, not even bothering to knock anymore, the first thing she saw was Stefan sitting on the couch with a glass of bourbon, staring at the wall looking rather despondent.

"Hey Stefan!" She said in a chipper voice, plopping down next to him with a smile, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. The skin felt slightly clammy, just barely damp.

"Have you been crying?" Elena asked, pressing their shoulders and legs closer together.

"No!" Stefan said defensively, shooting her a look, feigning anger that she would think such a thing. But when she moved closer, leaned into him and rested her head on his shoulder, he stiffened, reflexively inching away just a little.

"Stefan, is something wrong?" Elena pried, looking into his obviously troubled eyes. Why was he acting like this? Maybe she should just go back to Bonnie's if Stefan wasn't up for anything fun.

"Nothing except my usual broody self." Stefan smiled weakly, setting down the alcohol and turning to face Elena, affectionately stroking her hair. Maybe if he tried to get closer to Elena again he'd stop thinking about Damon, his own brother. When he'd been dating her earlier he didn't remember feeling like this, though he had always accepted and admired his brother's beauty and wit, his undeniable charm, had loved him since they were small human children. In fact, he recalled several instances throughout history where all he had wanted was to touch Damon, hug him, or do some other intimate behavior, only refraining because Damon wasn't the type to show affection and he hated Stefan anyway, so he figured his best bet was to just stay far away from any and all brotherly intimacy. But now he wondered if it had always been more than just some innocent brotherly attraction, the normal idolization of an older sibling.

One thing was for sure though: the thoughts running through his mind right now definitely weren't normal. All he could think about was his brother's lips touching his, the silky black hairs tickling his forehead, and all the events of the past that were so similar, those distant human memories of kissing Damon so passionately it was like he'd never see him again. But those recollections were so deep in the past, so far from what he was today that they seemed to belong to a different lifetime, a different person altogether. He was a vampire now and things were different, especially his relations with his brother. Love to hate. But they didn't hate each other now, did they? At least, Stefan felt their feelings regarding each other had become much better since their time in Mystic Falls. Of course, things could never be as they were, but yes, better. For clarification, the hatred had always sprung from Damon's side. Stefan had never _hated_ his brother, never could and never would. Resented him, been repulsed by him, been angry at him, perhaps. But never hated him.

After his sudden attack on Damon this morning, though, Stefan was sure that Damon was now the one disgusted by him, and he wouldn't be surprised if their newly kindled feelings of brotherhood crumbled to shit once again. It was probably inevitable anyway. If he was lucky, they would both just pretend the incident had never occurred, forgoing any awkward discussions about the reasons behind that fateful kiss, the one that was bound to ruin everything. But Stefan doubted that would happen, because Damon was sure to be pissed.

The only thing Stefan could be positive about was this: He had kissed his brother. And he had liked it.

…

Damon let the boy drop to the ground, head lolling to the side, mouth still twisted in that goofy smile. It made him extremely uncomfortable to stare at this dead body, this boy with light brown hair, bright green eyes, and that damned grin, all while knowing he was dead, and Damon looked away in disgust as his stomach lurched and he thought he might throw up the blood he'd just drank. Usually being near his victims didn't bother him, but he hadn't killed anyone in so long that maybe it would take some getting used to? Not that he planned to take up killing again, it was just that he missed it sometimes, and there was a hell of a lot on his mind. There was this feeling nagging at the back of his brain, some uncomfortable and bad feeling that usually led to killing, but he was confused as to why it was there this time around.

I DID NOT KISS STEFAN!

Okay… at least that was out in the open now. And it was true. His brother had kissed him and now it was fucking with his mind. He hadn't done anything wrong! So why did he feel guilty? Like he was the instigator or something, like the whole incident was his fault, like he had willed it to happen. Which he hadn't, of course. There was no reason for him to want to kiss his brother, his own flesh and blood for crying out loud.

But all those years ago… yes. He _had_ kissed his brother. And he vaguely remembered enjoying it and then feeling this same guilty feeling, this same tugging at his subconscious as if he had done wrong. But things were different now. He hadn't kissed and he didn't like it.

And he repeated that mantra for about half an hour, in some sort of stupor.

_I didn't kiss him and didn't like it. I didn't kiss him and didn't like it. I didn't kiss him and didn't like it. I didn't…_ and so on and so forth, only breaking focus to blankly note that he almost never fed from men and that the guy looked strangely familiar, almost looked like… _I didn't kiss him and didn't like it._

…

Before he even knew what was happening he was making out with Elena. It was all so sudden. One minute they were talking and Stefan was worrying about liking Damon a little too much and then the next Elena's tongue was groping to get in his mouth, sliding wetly all over his face and lips.

Of course he returned the attention, opening his lips for Elena's entry and moaning a little as she bit his lower lip and sucked on it, drawing blood which she promptly licked off. Because this was normal. This was acceptable. This was what he was supposed to do. He was supposed to be with a girl, one who had no relation to him, one that he loved. And he did love Elena. The kissing was enjoyable and he thought she was amazingly beautiful, compassionate, and everything he should want, but all he could think about, all he could imagine was… oh, even to admit this… was his goddamn brother. Damon fucking Salvatore.

When he gripped Elena's hair he visualized that nest of black strands, artfully tousled and perfectly beautiful, dark and mysterious, dangerous. As he looked into her eyes he saw blue instead of brown, that bright and vibrant blue, that ever-changing blue. It was only recently, as Stefan began to ponder it, that he realized Damon's eyes changed color depending on the lighting and the situation at hand. Sometimes they were very dark, like a large abyss that was all too easy to get sucked into, while other times they were electric, small laser beams shooting across the room, playful yet serious, always ready to flash whatever emotion Damon was feeling at the time. But Stefan's favorite was when they were the palest of blues, burning out from under the dark features like a light from heaven. Not that he was spending a lot of time gazing deep into Damon's eyes or anything…

As he began to rub Elena's back he imagined what it would feel like to trace his brother's muscles, grip his strong shoulders instead of Elena's delicate, bony ones, run his finger along Damon's spine and feel him shiver just as Elena was doing now. He felt her lips and thought of the silk that was Damon, wanted that again, wanted to feel his brother's fangs, wanted to taste his flavor again. When Elena moaned or whimpered, he imagined the huskiness of Damon's voice, the richness of it, in lieu of the high pitched and whiny one he was hearing now, and chuckled to himself about all the dirty things Damon would probably be muttering in his ear, the seductiveness of his hot breath hitting the skin before licking it.

It occurred to Stefan that these thoughts were wrong, but he made no move to drive them away. They were just so goddamn exhilarating! Thinking about his brother was making him hard, and somewhere in the back of his mind Stefan knew this was a problem, but he continued on anyway, making Elena think it was all her. He knew that after this was over he would have to seriously deal with the situation, something he was dreading greatly, but he had to get to the bottom of all this and sort out his true feelings. Hopefully it didn't turn out as repulsive as he suspected it might, for he really didn't think Damon would be up for the brotherly bonding he had in mind…

Meanwhile, Elena was kissing Stefan roughly and passionately, amazed at his responsiveness. He'd never been this into it as far as she could remember, feeling as he grew hard against her leg. Interesting…

She could swear that his mouth tasted faintly of Damon.

…

Damon was making his way back to the boarding house with that sick feeling in his stomach still lingering. He really shouldn't have killed that boy, or fed on him at all. Images of that lovely grin were plastered behind his eyes and every time he closed them it sprung up and made him dry heave a little. Ugh. Jesus, he couldn't deny it any longer: Stefan used to wear that smile all the time when they were boys, and Damon had loved it, doing anything and everything in his power to bring it onto his brother's face. It had been his sole mission in life: make Stefan smile. He had loved his brother.

But then things had changed. Katherine, vampirism, none of it should have happened. After it did, Damon never saw the smile again. Ever. And if he had the chance to make him and Stefan human brothers again, he might just do it to see that smile light up again, that contagious grin that had him laughing and grinning right back.

And he had killed it today.

When he had been in love with Elena, was pining hopelessly after her as she bestowed all her attentions on his brother, he had gone around and fed on and killed young girls with olive skin, brown eyes, and long, dark brown hair. What did that indicate?

So many thoughts were circling his head as he approached the mansion, knowing Stefan was still inside. What was he going to say? How was he going to act? Should he just pretend the incident never happened, or should he talk about it? Be angry about it? Be teasing? God, what the fuck did he know.

And that's when he smelled Elena, the two-timing bitch.

Sneaking up to the window he sucked in a sharp breath as his suspicions were confirmed: Elena was sucking on Stefan's face like there was no tomorrow, devouring his lips like they were fucking candy. Damon was surprisingly not angered in the least by this sight, merely watching with a sort of sick fascination as she reached down to remove his baby brother's shirt, lifting the fabric over his head as he clutched her little waist and groaned in ecstasy. For some reason, this made Damon mad, that Stefan was so into it, so apparently turned on by Elena. He'd just been kissing Damon for God's sakes!

Maybe it was all some big misunderstanding, a mistake, that deranged and random kiss in the bathroom this morning. Damon tried, and failed, to be relieved by this and was instead almost… sad? No, not possible, he must just be feeling betrayed by Elena. But he knew that was a lie. He actually felt a barely detectable hint of jealousy at her current position.

Oh shit. Stop thinking like that, Damon Salvatore. You want to be kissing _Elena_ right now. You want to be _Stefan_ in this situation.

_You want to be_ in _Stefan in this situation._

Oh no. Whenever you start thinking about fucking your little brother, you know there's a problem. And Damon may have a slight problem.

He held his breath as Stefan's shirt slid over his head and that beautifully sculpted torso was revealed, the chiseled abs clenching beneath Elena's teasing fingertips. And fuck, Stefan was just so into it, kissing Elena with an abandon Damon had never before seen. And once again he felt slightly jealous, a feeling he pushed away with uneasiness settling deep in his stomach, sickened by his own fascination with his brother.

This was wrong. But he couldn't tear his eyes away. No matter how much he refused to admit it to himself, Stefan was damn beautiful and he knew it, had always known it. He was entranced by the pale flesh just above the waistband of his pants, the subtle blush coloring his cheeks and the plumpness of his pink lips.

And watching Stefan kiss Elena only made Damon remember the feel of Stefan's lips on his own, how fucking good it had felt, how utterly right even though his brain warned him it was wrong. All he wanted now was to go back in time to that moment so he could kiss back, could twine his hands in his brother's lush hair, breath seductive words in his ear, and lick him all over his perfect skin, marvel at his still boyish face, locked forever in year seventeen. A boy can dream.

And then he saw it. Damon swore to God he saw it, would nearly bet on his life that it was there. But one can never be sure, and Damon soon dismissed it as wishful thinking and a wild imagination, turning away from the window, suddenly feeling rather distressed.

If only it had been real. But shit, he could almost guarantee it was. As Elena had suckled down Stefan's neck, his face the perfect picture of ecstasy and total pleasure, Damon swore he saw Stefan's lips mutter one soundless word. Just one. Right at the pinnacle of happiness.

Damon.

Sure, it sounded crazy, but it was there, he was sure of it! While simultaneously knowing it couldn't have been true. Now that Damon recognized his fucked up feelings, nothing was for sure anymore anyway. Loving your brother was tough. Being in love with your brother was tougher. Especially when you were both apparently dating the same girl at the same time.

Of course, their relationship had always been fucked up, but this? This was a completely new level of insanity. Damon had probably had every possible kind of sexual encounter in his long life, all except fucking his brother. But there's a first time for everything, right? Even incest... Yeah…

Okay, Damon had finally gone off the deep end. His mind was a jumble of shit and nothing made sense.

Except for one thing: His brother had kissed him. And he had liked it.


	5. Chapter 5: broken promises

Broken Promises

_***Thanks to all who reviewed! I appreciate it so much and encourage everyone to review this chapter as well. I hope it is satisfactory, so enjoy!***_

Damon sat on the couch in the boardinghouse, Elena on the floor between his legs. He was absentmindedly running his fingers through her hair, thinking of Stefan and how to resolve this little issue. The thing was, Damon was almost absolutely positive Stefan, innocent, saintly little Stefan, would never want him in that way. The kiss was obviously a mistake. But now they were stuck in some sort of fucked up love triangle with Damon pining after Stefan, Stefan pining after Elena, and Elena pining after the both of them, supposedly. Speaking of Stefan, Damon was surprised that he hadn't smelled him on Elena before now. She positively reeked of him and Damon was loving every second of it, putting his nose against the top of her head and inhaling deeply, letting that sweet scent, so reminiscent of his brother, fill his nose with an audible sigh of contentment. Elena wouldn't need to know the true nature of that sigh, or the true reason behind the passionate kiss he next initiated.

The honest truth was that he hoped to taste Stefan in her mouth, just as he could smell him on her body. He figured the same principles applied, and turned her around so they were facing one another and pressed their lips together gently at first, then hungrily, gaining entry to her mouth as quickly as possible in order to sweep his tongue around the interior, capturing all of his brother that was possible. In fact, she did taste rather strongly of Stefan, and he let out a small moan as the flavor invaded his senses, licking eagerly in all the far corners of her mouth, savoring the richness and depth of it. He detected hints of cinnamon and strawberries, an unlikely combination but a surprisingly enticing one, causing him to imagine how good it would be were he in Stefan's mouth directly, instead of getting it secondhand from Elena.

But then she moaned. This needy little noise broke the trance he had fallen into, shattered his bliss. He hated it.

Breaking the kiss abruptly, he shoved her away and returned to his natural position, facing her back as she was nestled between his legs. He needed to stop thinking about Stefan because it was never going to happen. It _shouldn't_ ever happen. And yet he wanted it so badly… but no. He _really_ needed to get with Elena, but solo, no brother clouding his every thought, no brother tainting her mouth and scent. Not that he didn't enjoy it, he just didn't _want_ to enjoy it, didn't want to have her as a constant reminder of his sick desires. She needed to be his and his alone so that he could focus his love and attention on her, hopefully dissolving these incestuous fantasies and constructing happy, normal ones in their place.

"Damon!" Elena's sharp and disbelieving voice shook him out of his reveries and he rolled his eyes, wondering what the hell was wrong with her now. "What the fuck was that?"

Great. She was angry about something or other that he had done. What was new? Was she always displeased with him? It's not like he changed his entire personality and lifestyle for her or anything… It was actually kind of funny, how he had been so preoccupied by Elena and now that he was lusting after Stefan, he didn't care half as much what she thought or said. He still loved her in a way, but it wasn't the same. Despite his recent change of heart, however, he had to make this work somehow if he ever hoped to avoid more awkward run-ins with his little brother, which were bound to happen given his present state of desire. He'd only seen Stefan three times in the past two days, and they were brief meetings, mind you, ones that consisted of a mere passing in the hallway or a quick walk out the door, only making eye contact once, but in each of those fleeting encounters Damon had been forced to suppress the rather embarrassing and possibly fatal, to their relationship, anyway, yearning to reach out, spin him around, gaze deep into those green eyes and plant one on him. A kiss, that is.

In this fantasy Stefan would be a little shocked at first, perhaps pushing Damon away and expressing concern, before realizing that Damon had no malicious intent and surprising him by walking back up with conviction and kissing him, hands tugging on his hair, lips on his neck, chin, jaw, ear, lips, everywhere, before clothes were shed and, well, the rest was pretty self-explanatory. But Damon realized this was ludicrous and therefore managed to control himself until Stefan or he reached their destination. They hadn't spoken at all.

Anyhow, back to the matter at hand: Elena was acting all pissed and confused for some unfathomable reason.

"What's the matter honey?" Damon said in his "sweet" voice, that wasn't really sweet at all, betraying his indifference to whatever was wrong. It was also a jab at their fake relationship, considering Elena was cheating on him with Stefan and he was, well, let's just say he wasn't dreaming of _her_ anymore, his brother having invaded his mind even during unconsciousness.

"What's the matter? You just pulled me into this passionate kiss and threw me back after, like, ten seconds. And you've been acting all weird lately. You don't even look at me anymore. At least, not like you used to." Hmm… so it was that obvious. He thought he'd been playing the part pretty well. Maybe it was time to come clean.

"Did you think I was a fool, Elena? Didn't think I'd find out your little secret? Seriously? Humans are so pathetic."

"I-I don't know what you're t-talking about." Elena managed to splutter, looking at him with giant doe eyes filled with fear and shame.

"Don't fuck with me Elena. You know exactly what I'm talking about. I can smell him all over you. And taste him too. I've known for a while now."

"Damon, I, I mean, we… _we_ couldn't lose him. He would've left. You know I couldn't let that happen, for both our sakes. You understand, right?"

"Real smart, try to pin this on me like it's my fault, like you did this for my benefit too. This was all for you, honey. I saw you making out with him on this very couch the other day, and you seemed to be enjoying it a little too damn much for someone who's going through all this self-sacrifice." God, he needed to calm down. His naturally possessive vampire tendencies were showing through, and he was trying to stake his claim. But not on Elena. On Stefan.

"I'm sorry Damon! I love you both. But that doesn't mean I love you any less! I couldn't lose Stefan, not again." She was becoming emotional. Jesus, Damon hated dealing with emotional women! That was at least one benefit to men: the amount of tears and emotional outbursts significantly decreased.

"Just… I'm sorry okay? Sorry for yelling. I just want you for myself Elena. I don't want to share you, and especially not with my brother of all people. I love you too much. If you don't break up with him or end whatever this is, then I'm going to have to let you go. And trust me, that's the last thing I want to do." There. He'd done it, and now she would choose him, of course. His problems would be solved. Maybe Stefan leaving would be for the best, considering the danger he was being put in from Damon's constant urge to attack him with kisses and confessions of love… yes, perhaps his brother should leave, though the very words made Damon's heart ache.

"Damon, I… God, I love you too, so so much, but I can't… I can't lose Stefan! Not again. We've been through so much and we always seem to find our way back to each other, and I think it's fate. We're fate. I never wanted to hurt you, because I really do love you, but I think I should leave now." The tears were really falling at this point and Elena scurried as quickly as possible out of the room in the hopes of making a hasty escape.

"Umm… what did you just say, exactly? I think I misunderstood. Did we just do the "it's always going to be Stefan" thing again?" Again? Freaking again?!

"I suppose so. Please don't leave though, Damon, we can still hang out. We can still be friends." Her voice got smaller and squeakier at the end of the sentence, as Damon stepped forward threateningly, glowering while she backed away towards the door.

"Get the fuck out of my house." He snarled, making a lunge for her retreating form so that she hurried up. He didn't want to have to look at that crumpled face any longer than necessary. Why the hell was she upset? He was the one that had just been dumped. Again. In almost the exact same words.

At least this time he understood why she would choose his brother. The boy was fucking sexy. And he had that charming naiveté about him, the innocent smile and somewhat shy demeanor. His hair was beautifully thick and plush, so perfect for sifting fingers through, his deep green eyes hiding some deep and complex soul, one marred by his eternally tortured existence. Stefan's body was impeccable, hard and slim, muscular while still managing to appear rather boyish. Everything about him was seemingly perfect.

Damon grabbed the nearest bottle of alcohol and took a swig out of it, sighing as he laid down on the couch, staring intently at the ceiling above. He felt angry. Angry at Elena for foiling his plans to get over this brotherly lust, angry at Stefan for inciting such lust, and angry at the world for making him feel these forbidden things. It wasn't right, but since when did he do the right thing? He supposed he was just a plain evil person, put on this Earth for the sole purpose of doing bad deeds. There had to be a balance of good and evil, so when he cut back on the killing, what better than to make him fall in love with his own brother. Somebody was probably out there laughing at his predicament right now, making fun of his emotional turmoil and attempts at doing the right thing. Eventually he would give in. Unless he managed to leave Mystic Falls for good, let Stefan and Elena be happy, live a prosperous life, only coming back to visit his brother when none of his inappropriate feelings were present anymore. Then again, that could be a very long time.

Damon thought about going to pack, about begging Elena's forgiveness, and about finding Stefan and telling him everything. But instead, all he did was lay on the couch and drink. Thinking of his time with Stefan as humans, he realized he'd never be able to stop thinking of him as his baby brother. That didn't mean he couldn't also think of him as something more, though.

…

Stefan was out "hunting," despite having done so at least four times a day for the past two days, that being his go-to excuse for why he had to leave whenever Damon was around. In fact, he hadn't really seen his brother at all since he kissed him, and he felt as if Damon was avoiding him just as much as he was avoiding Damon. Of course, Stefan knew this couldn't go on forever, and eventually something would have to happen, a confrontation of sorts. And there were pretty much only three possible outcomes that he could imagine:

Damon returned his feelings and they engaged in a full-fledged make-out session, living happily ever after.

Damon and he reconciled, agreed it was a mistake, and resumed their previous, strictly brotherly relationship.

Damon was repulsed and disgusted by him and hated Stefan for the rest of eternity, never speaking to him again.

The only thing he could hope for was that it wasn't option three.

He sat down on a stump to contemplate the rest of the day, deciding now was the best time to fantasize about his brother considering he'd probably have to spend the remainder of his hours with Elena, despite having spent the morning with her, so he commenced to visualize first Damon's plump lips, then his striking eyes, and then his rumpled black hair, until finally he was picturing his entire body. There was something especially endearing about his brother. Perhaps it was the danger. Or maybe the goodness behind the danger. Or maybe nothing to do with danger at all, though Stefan suspected it helped at least a little. He had always envied the firm grasp Damon held on darkness, how he controlled it rather than letting it control him. It was a concept Stefan never learned, was unable to learn, really, no matter how hard Damon had tried to teach it.

Even as humans his brother had been a rebel, sneaking behind their father's back and doing things he wasn't supposed to be doing. The impressive part was that he was never caught, always escaping in the nick of time, allowing Giuseppe to know he had done something, just not having the evidence as to what. Damon found hilarity in teasing the man like this, outsmarting him, and he still liked to play such games, no matter how foolish. A perfect example, actually, was that secret kiss before he had left for war, although it had progressed beyond a mere kiss. How their father had stared, maybe even glared, at the two boys, looking pointedly at Damon's blushing cheeks and taunting smirk, knowing that he had done something awful and knowing the boy was mocking him with it, dangling whatever it was over his head, keeping it just out of reach. Stefan, on the other hand, had been panicking and trying to look as innocent as possible, serving only to make Damon's smirk even broader and making his father's suspicions grow. It had been a fun night, however sad and miserable he had been due to Damon's pending departure, all thanks to his brother's wild and clever ideas.

This trait carried over to his vampirism, was perhaps even amplified by it, making him all the more devious, a glint of mischief forever lighting his eyes, his sparkling blue eyes. And Stefan loved him for it, though at times it made him impossible to be around, such was his dedication at teasing and fucking with his little brother.

Alas, Stefan was soon roused from his pleasant daydreams by the last voice he wanted to hear at the moment.

"Stefan? Stefan, where are you?" Elena called, stumbling through the forest, a few remaining tears still clinging to her cheeks. Stefan could hear the tremble in her voice and knew instantly that she had been crying, cursing that she had showed up in his private sanctuary at all, not to mention in a state such as this, with red, puffy eyes, streaks of crusty residue on her cheeks, knees cut up from falling on the rocks and twigs, hair in a state of complete and utter disarray. He was not in the mood to deal with this right now.

Okay. Put on your concerned boyfriend face.

"Elena, are you alright?" Stefan used his vampire speed to reach her, and held her up as she was about to trip again, taking in her ragged appearance. What the hell was she doing out here?

"Oh, Stefan!" She cried, burying her face in his chest and heaving large sighs of relief. "Stefan, I've made a decision for real this time, a final and permanent decision."

"A decision about what?" He was confused. What was she babbling on about?

"You. I officially choose you. We can tell everyone now, get married if you like, travel the world, do whatever you want. I'm yours forever." She was panting and kissing up his chest right onto his lips, his unwilling lips, for thoughts of Damon were still simmering in the back of his mind as he tried to process the words that had just come out of her mouth.

She had chosen him? As in, really picked him and left Damon completely behind? He had wanted this for so long, but now it didn't feel right… obviously. Because he wanted Damon. But Damon didn't want him. Maybe getting together with Elena for real would alter his feelings, though, make him see reason. It was worth a try, at least, so he forced his face up into an awed smile, pulling Elena into the most passionate kiss he could muster.

And he tried so hard not to think of Damon, not to imagine his brother flush against his body, gripping at his face and back and chest, fingers trailing along his body ever so lightly, just as they had done so many years before, but he was failing miserably, forcing himself to end the kiss before things got too out of hand and he was imaginary fucking his older brother, something he wanted to avoid only because he was afraid if it happened he might have to make fantasy reality, and that would be pretty damn messed up, though admittedly hot. Very hot.

"I love you Elena." He said through clenched teeth, trying to mean it in the way it was supposed to be meant, for he did love her, just not in the same way he loved, say, Damon. Which was interesting because he loved Damon in many ways, from a brotherly love, to a friendly one, to a romantic one, though neither quite fit Elena. She was somewhere between friendly and romantic, a friend with benefits, perhaps, as one might say in this day and age.

"I love you too Stefan." She said into his shirt, holding him in a tight embrace for what seemed like hours. When she released him, Stefan was extremely grateful and told her as such, although she took it as thanks for choosing him, not thanks for letting him return to the one he truly loved, which was where he intended to head as quickly as possible. He had to think through this. What was he going to do, marry Elena? She couldn't live out the remainder of her life with a vampire anyway, considering she was now human. It wouldn't be fair to either of them and frankly just wouldn't work for numerous reasons. Relationships like this had never succeeded unless the human was turned, which definitely wasn't happening here since Elena had so recently taken the cure to get rid of her unwanted vampirism.

And what about Damon? No matter how much he wanted to, Stefan didn't know if he could just forget about him or ignore his feelings toward him. No matter how wrong they were, they were some of the most real and intense feelings Stefan had ever felt towards another being in his entire life. And with that, he bid Elena farewell and headed home. Didn't they always say home is where the heart is?

….

"I see you've won."

Stefan looked up to see Damon lounging in his doorway, arms crossed and head cocked to the side, the picture of ease and arrogance. Stefan was merely laying on his bed, legs draped over the side and hands raking through his hair as he struggled to find a solution to his multitudinous problems. Needless to say, he hadn't come up with any.

"What are you talking about?" Stefan asked, surprisingly able to find a voice, something that hadn't happened in Damon's presence since the… incident. His brother looked as delicious as ever, though, in his characteristic black skinny jeans and black t-shirt, each article of clothing conforming to his sculpted body perfectly. He was utterly dazzling, eyes and mouth twisted in that malicious taunting expression, alight with a fury Stefan knew all too well. Damon was at least slightly drunk and upset. Hopefully too drunk to notice Stefan ogling him, lips parted and eyes moving up and down the black-clad form in the doorway.

"Elena. She's yours, chose you. I bet you're thrilled." Damon smiled, pushing off the wall so that he was standing instead of leaning, smirking at Stefan a little, causing his tongue to lick his lips in excitement, almost forgetting how dangerous his brother could truly be when drunk and angry, instead sitting there, enthralled by his every movement. "Little brother, why are you the bane of my existence? Whatever I want, you take. Whatever I want, I can't have. Usually because of you. Because you're my brother."

"I'm sorry Damon. If I could I would make Elena want you, heck, take her! I'm sure she'd be happy to have you, she's probably just trying to keep me from leaving again." Stefan pleaded, wanting more than anything to please his brother, please Damon. Because he loved him. But he just laughed.

"Oh no, brother. She had me. She forfeited me because she's always loved you. Everyone always loved you. Maybe if you were as alone as I was, if no one loved you like no one loves me, maybe I could have a shot at what I really wanted, actually stand a chance, but probably not even then. I'm unlovable." Damon shrugged, moving closer, a deep sadness in his eyes behind the anger.

"You're not unlovable. I love you, Damon, and so does Elena. I mean – wait… what do you mean she had you? You were with Elena?" Now Stefan was puzzled. What the hell?

"Ding-ding-ding! She played us both, Stefan. And then chose you because I made her choose. You can thank me later." He smiled and reached over to pat Stefan on the shoulder. "Congratulations. You and your true love can be happy for the rest of your lives."

"Wait, Damon, how did you find out?" Stefan asked. Was he the only one who hadn't known what was going on?

"Oh, I've known for a while little brother. Saw you making out on the couch, was pretty disappointed." Damon made a fake pout, sticking out his lower lip in a way Stefan found to be nearly irresistible. But he held his ground.

"You didn't tell me?" He asked, genuinely disappointed. He would've thought his brother would have warned him about Elena cheating on the both of them.

"Well, I was feeling a little betrayed. I thought you loved me, what with your little kissy act in the bathroom, and then I come home to find you making out with a woman on our couch. Naughty, naughty, little brother." Damon tsked, shaking his head in mock disapproval. He could tell he'd hit a sensitive topic when he mentioned their kiss, as Stefan's cheeks reddened in embarrassment. It was the first time they'd said anything about it since the unfortunate occurrence.

"Shut up Damon." Stefan warned. Standing up off the bed to face his brother head on.

"Oooh, did we strike a nerve? Feeling a little insecure about your love for Elena? How about this, brother, bet you like it." Damon pushed, daring to reach out and press his finger to Stefan's lips, flicking at the lower one before Stefan knocked his hand away. Jesus, he was really drunk and really pissed to work up this kind of courage. "No? How about this…" He let his hand wander to Stefan's hip, giving it a firm squeeze, allowing Stefan to swat away his hand once again. He just chuckled, keeping the smirk plastered on his face. He was enjoying this.

"Stay the fuck away from me Damon. It's not going to happen like this." He cautioned, stepping back.

"What's not going to happen like this? Us? We're _brothers_ Stefan, or have you forgotten… Do you not like my touch? Come on, show me how much you love me." Damon taunted, pressing Stefan against the wall, inching closer and closer until their noses were nearly touching and Damon's leg was situated rather conveniently between Stefan's thighs. The younger vampire could scarcely breath for their proximity, afraid that inhaling the musky scent of Damon would ignite a flame of desire too strong to ignore right in that place that was pressed tightly against his brother's leg, making it glaringly obvious. So he did what all impulse was telling him to: punch Damon right in the jaw.

All he felt was a stinging pain as Stefan's fist connected with his face, and then all that could be seen was a mop of black hair being whipped to the side as Damon stumbled backwards. He immediately recovered and turned back to Stefan, challenge in his eyes as he laughed and laughed, clutching at his sides from laughter as his younger brother stood by in confusion.

"Do you actually think you can fight me?" Damon asked seriously. "Big mistake brother, big mistake." And before Stefan knew it, his head smacked against the wall with the force of Damon's punch, and again and again as Damon continued hitting him, beating him to a pulp.

But vampires heal quickly, and Stefan recovered, shoving Damon away and driving him into the opposite wall, kicking him right in the abdomen, which had Damon doubled over in no time, so that he could resume his own punches, leaving Damon with a bloody nose and a few missing teeth.

From then on it transformed into an all-out brotherly brawl, complete with rolling on the floor, grunting, hitting, and kicking, although it was a terribly uneven match. Damon only let Stefan gain the upper hand a few times out of boredom and amusement, always assuming his role back on top at some point.

"Poor little Stefan, always so naïve, thinking he can beat big bad Damon." He smiled down at his little brother, pinned on the floor beneath him. Damon was straddling Stefan, knees on either side of his waist, hands pinning down his shoulders. When he stopped to think about it, it was actually a pretty erotic position. But Damon wasn't really thinking clearly right now, so he just continued on, suddenly struck with the urge to humiliate Stefan even further, punish him for being so damn cute, for being so damn forbidden: he decided to feed from him, the ultimate display of dominance.

When Stefan gathered what he meant to do, he began to struggle desperately, begging him to stop, to have mercy.

"Please Damon, please, don't do this." Stefan whined, pushing uselessly at his hands and torso, shoving with all his might. It was horrible to be fed on as a vampire, as Stefan knew from experience, as Damon had done it before. It was his least favorite form of punishment.

"Oh, but I know you like this." Damon breathed in his ear, causing an inadvertent shiver to run down Stefan's spine, before leaning in and biting slowly into his neck.

The immediate ecstasy was amazing as Damon began his feeding, drawing lazily on Stefan's blood, tasting the cinnamon and strawberries and everything else mixed in. It was glorious and he began to get lost in it as he would feeding on any other human, leaning in closer to run his hands along his brother's sides, stroke up his neck with feathery touches and across his jaw as well. At first, Stefan had cried out in pain, clawing at Damon frantically to deter him, but as he relaxed into it a thrill of pleasure ran through him, and he arched his back into his older brother's firm chest subconsciously, letting out a long, throaty moan with it, grasping at Damon's hair and pulling him closer. He'd never felt anything like this.

Damon was moaning into Stefan's neck as the blood poured on, now running his hands through Stefan's hair, starting to rock his body gently against Stefan's, grinding against him as the younger vampire began to writhe beneath his body, hands finding his back, tracing the sinewy muscles situated there. He began to grow hard and ground a little faster against Damon's body above him, causing Damon to become hard too, until finally they pulled apart, Damon panting heavily, gazing down at Stefan with blood smeared on his lips. He leaned in and licked up his younger brother's neck to capture any leftover blood, hot and wet tongue passing over Stefan's glistening skin.

And then they just stared. A moment passed between them, Damon hovering above, straddling Stefan's waist while Stefan sat below, holding on to Damon's hips. Blue eyes to green they gazed, faces blank, only the heavy breathing indicating they were still alive.

"I hate you." Damon said evenly, no expression, not breaking eye contact with Stefan as he stared down.

"I know." Stefan replied in the same way, expressionless and emotionless.

And then their lips crushed together.


	6. Chapter 6: I hate everything about you

I Hate Everything About You

_***Sorry for the long wait! I had a lot of trouble writing this and probably deleted and rewrote it at least three times. And I'm still not satisfied. Oh well, this is what you get, so enjoy it! And review please! I like reviews. They make me happy! Until next time…***_

Well this was… unexpected. Damon had kissed him. _Was_ kissing him, actually. Because it wasn't just a peck, it was a full-fledged passionate kiss. How'd this even happen? One minute they were fighting and the next they were kissing. And it had been Damon who initiated it.

"Damon… what are you doing?" Stefan mumbled as Damon's lips momentarily left his, only to reconnect immediately after. Shit. What the hell was _he_ doing? All his fantasies were coming true and he was trying to stop it? But then again, they _were_ brothers, as Damon had said… this was wrong... maybe he should stop and think about this… Oh, fuck it.

"I… don't know." Damon said, sitting up, panting, face red with either embarrassment, exertion, or both.

"I didn't tell you to stop." Stefan said quietly, peaking up at his brother through fringed lashes, watching as a small smirk played on his lips and his blue eyes widened with shock, but he made no move to continue with the kissing. Stefan sat upright so that their chests were almost touching and their lips were mere inches apart, giving a small grin of his own as he reached out and grabbed the back of Damon's neck, pulling him in for another go. And this time Stefan moved as well, caressing Damon's lips with his own, moaning as his brother tugged on his lower lip with his teeth, nipping playfully.

There was some inexplicable feeling that passed through his body as it moved against Damon's, something that was just _right_. It seemed as if they melded together to become one as Stefan moved to straddle Damon's waist, pretty much sitting in his lap, wrapping his legs around his back, one hand gripping his hair and stroking his cheek while the other hugged his back, pulling him ever closer. Their lips were in-synch, moving against each other perfectly as Damon extended his tongue to lick around Stefan's mouth, eliciting another needy moan as he arched his back into his brother's strong chest, tilting his head back and clenching his fists in the black hair, his eyes squeezed tightly closed.

Damon let out a small chuckle at Stefan's reaction before diving back in, kissing along his jaw, eyes trained on his brother's face to catch all the little shudders of pleasure. Just like Stefan, one of his hands was twined in the brown hair, running through the silky strands, making Stefan's scalp tingle as cool fingers ghosted down along his neck and jaw where Damon's lips had just been, cupping his chin as his mouth returned to Stefan's, the other hand slipping under his shirt tracing patterns on the small of his back, making Stefan arch it all the more, leaning his head on Damon's shoulder with a sigh as Damon moved his kisses to his ear. He licked around the perimeter before nipping and sucking on the lobe, his hot breath shooting inside, making Stefan shake all over in ecstasy.

Fuck he was good. Stefan was almost embarrassed at how his body was reacting to Damon's touches, reduced to a weak and trembling figure, only being held together by his brother's constant barrage of kisses and licks. He clutched at Damon, trying to hold himself up as his lips moved from his ear down his neck, Damon's hands holding onto his waist, keeping him upright as he moaned, lips sucking on an especially sensitive area behind his ear, thighs clenching around his hips.

Then his shirt was being pulled off, the head of black hair travelling to his collarbone where it resumed its ministrations, licking down to his nipples where the tongue swirled around, causing them to harden deliciously, reminding him of the hardness in his pants. Jesus, if Damon didn't let up he was going to cum right here, which would be terribly embarrassing. Reluctantly he pulled on his brother's hair, bringing his head up and off his chest with a sucking sound and a moan of disappointment, the first moan he'd heard from Damon during this kissing. He pressed their lips together again, slipping his own hands under Damon's black shirt, running them up his sides, relishing in the hard muscles he felt underneath the skin, so soft it was like velvet, shuddering as Damon did the same, fingers fluttering all over his torso, feeling every inch of his body, hugging him so tight, holding him so close.

Soon Damon's tongue was sliding into his mouth, easily gaining dominance over his own as it explored the interior, running over his teeth and along the roof, the faint taste of blood still tainting his kisses, lips caressing Stefan's so gently yet passionately. God, this was heaven if such a place existed. Not that he would go there if he ever did die. He was making out with his brother for fuck's sake. No matter how much self-sacrifice he put himself through with the preservation of human life he sure as hell wasn't going to heaven now. Not that it wasn't worth it, because it definitely was.

And once again he was reminded of just how good this felt, how perfect it was to be with his brother like this again, that this had to be how things were_ supposed_ to be. It was impossible that this was wrong if it seemed so right. He couldn't help but revisit those long ago human years, a mere two incidents, where he and Damon had been connected like never before, when they had been pressed against each other, lips crushing together and hands roaming one another's bodies, how he had felt then as well, how he felt so close to his brother, as if he would never leave, as if he would never stop loving and protecting him. But then things had changed, Damon had changed. He had changed too probably, but not as drastically as his brother, and now he felt the love once again, that feeling of safety and adoration he had once held whenever in Damon's presence. They were whole again.

Another moan escaped his parted lips as Damon nuzzled into his shoulder, placing small butterfly kisses all over his skin, and Stefan couldn't stand it any longer: he ripped the shirt right off Damon's body, which had him leaning away slightly in surprise before smiling and laughing a little.

"I never knew my little brother was such an animal." He smirked, leaning back in so that their naked chests were touching, placing a quick and affectionate kiss on Stefan's nose. Stefan was just staring, looking his brother up and down in awe. Of course he'd seen Damon naked plenty of times and had most likely seen him more times without a shirt than with one, but it was an even more amazing sight to behold in such an intimate situation, so close to him that he was actually touching the perfection. Oh god, the flawless pale skin, so soft and delicate, revealing the lean muscles underneath that were wonderfully slim, not bulky yet still hard.

And then there were his jeans, slung so low on his hips that it was a wonder they were still on, clearly not wearing any undergarments. Seeing his brother like this filled Stefan with a lust he had never before felt, even with Elena, and he decided to take control, giving Damon's nipples the same treatment his had been given, shuddering with each moan he pulled out of his brother's mouth, loving to watch as his face scrunched up in pleasure, teeth clenched and muscles tensed as he tried to control himself.

Stefan trailed his tongue down the center of Damon's chest until stopping where his pants started, which, as was previously stated, was perilously low, and he began placing very small fluttery kisses there along his waistband, blowing as he picked his lips up, letting his hot breath float across the moistened skin, bringing forth more of those deliciously needy noises from Damon's mouth. He could feel the prominent bulge in his brother's pants and on instinct reached out to unbutton and unzip the constricting article of clothing, only managing to undo the button before he realized Damon had scuttled across the room and was now pressed against the opposite wall as if Stefan meant to attack him or something, eyes a little frightened and weary, perhaps… saddened? Why the hell would he be sad? That had been fucking awesome!

His breathing was jagged and heavy, hair mussed and wild from their recent romp, face flushed red and body trembling a little as he gave a deep sigh and settled into a sitting position against the wall, head resting on his knees.

"Uh… Damon?" Stefan asked cautiously inching a little closer until he was sitting next to him, hand resting hesitantly on his shoulder. _Great job brother, way to kill the mood._

…

Something very strange had happened amidst that fight, the one he'd started out of jealousy and self-pity, anger. Very strange indeed.

Feeding on Stefan might have been a little dramatic, he'd admit, but it seemed the right thing to do at the time, so he had just leaned down and bit in, an action he had taken countless times, one that never failed to completely humiliate his little brother and show him who would always hold the real power.

But then that weird thing happened and it became a little too… pleasurable. It was always fun, sure, but never had he really tasted Stefan's blood like this before, never had he been so aware of their bodies pressed together and his lips on Stefan's neck. He began to really get into the feeding as if Stefan were some girl he was drinking from for erotic pleasure. Yes, drinking his brother's blood was pretty damn arousing, which was strange because it hadn't ever been this way before that he could remember, although his feelings were different now so perhaps that had something to do with it.

Then he started to worry that Stefan would notice that he was behaving strangely, that he was starting to rub against him a little in an entirely inappropriate fashion, that he wasn't biting down viciously, but gently, almost like a caress, silently moaning into his supple neck. All very suspicious behaviors.

Of course, he had been taunting Stefan earlier about his apparent "feelings", but that had all been in good fun to get a rise out of him, not because he actually believed his brother had such feelings for him. Because that was impossible and kinda wrong, despite the fact that he did in fact have those feelings himself. Nevertheless, the teasing wasn't serious and Stefan knew that.

But now Stefan would have to suspect there was something going on in light of this all-too-erotic feeding that was occurring. Shit. This situation was spiraling more and more out of control by the second.

At first Stefan had seemed pained and upset by the attack, as he always did, and Damon suspected he was the only one feeling such pleasure from the experience. But then Stefan began to writhe a bit… in pain? Hmm… that was odd considering he was a freaking vampire, who shouldn't get hurt _that_ bad from a small and shallow bite, one that was pretty soft and sensual to boot. Maybe he should stop. He didn't want to seriously injure Stefan, just teach him a lesson, and the face he was making was kind of weird too, slightly concerning and he was moaning and stuff…

Wait! What the hell? Moaning? Stefan didn't moan unless…

And then Stefan was holding him tighter, pressing his head farther into his neck. What the fuck was this? No way his brother was enjoying this as much as him…but yes, it did seem that way. This was definitely a pleasure face, judging from past traumatic experiences involving seeing Stefan naked in bed with a woman. All accidental incidents, of course. Well, maybe…

Didn't matter anyway. Whatever the case, when he finally removed his teeth from Stefan's neck, albeit reluctantly, they had this moment. Just staring at each other. Stefan's face kind of resembled "What the fuck just happened?" and Damon guessed his face was something like "That was awesome. Let's do it again!". He had obviously projected his feelings of bliss onto Stefan through the blood, therefore revealing just how much he really liked feeding on him. Which explained why he was hard. And shit, Stefan was hard too. This was rather embarrassing. Now his own brother knew he had naughty thoughts about him.

But right then Stefan decided to do the most seductive thing ever: lick his lips. Why? Why Stefan, why do you have to be so damn sexy? It was too late now, he couldn't tear his eyes away. Their lips were so close, if he were to just move a fraction of an inch he could press them together… No! Shut up dirty mind! If you do that, Stefan will never want to talk to you again and then you'll have no one. Be smart… be smart…

Fuck.

He crushed his lips right into Stefan's, all hard and intense, a little more bruising than he had imagined in his mind, but still his best effort, while the entire time his brain was yelling for him to stop, take some time to think this through, but no, the old mind over matter trick wasn't working today. Physically he was in heaven, biting a little on Stefan's motionless lips, but mentally he was in the deepest pits of hell, begging for his rebellious mouth to pull away now! Maybe it could be played off as a joke? Yeah, that mind-blowingly passionate kiss? Haha, funny right? You thought I was serious? Jesus, what kind of sick freak do you think I am… yeah. Pretty big one. Might as well just keep going.

But that was the problem. Stefan wasn't doing anything, just laying there completely still like he was in shock or something, which was entirely possible assuming vampires could go into shock. Could they? Oh well, no matter, the point was that his brother wasn't returning his embrace, was probably too sickened to even push him off.

"Damon… what are you doing?"

Fuck. The exact words he didn't want to hear. What _was_ he doing? Making out with his brother of course. Completely normal, nothing to be worried about.

"I… don't know." He said honestly. Christ, he could tell how red his face must be, how he was panting and still staring at Stefan's lips hungrily. Could he be any more obvious?

"I didn't tell you to stop."

Whoa. W-what? Did that mean… No. Must've misheard. Do _not_ lean in and kiss him again, you'll only freak him out further. Don't do it, don't do it.

Not that it mattered much. Stefan did it for him.

He felt those cool fingers grab the back of his neck and pull him in once again, leaving Damon wondering where his little brother had gotten so confident. And then it registered that Stefan was the one kissing him, that he had wanted it too. Which was mildly disturbing but much more satisfying as he was motionless no more, returning Damon's kisses, moving his lips as well and moaning, clutching at his hair and pulling him closer, stroking all over his body and up and down his back.

But all the while he couldn't get the thought out of his head that this was wrong, that he should stop it before things went too far. They were back in the 1800's, humans again, and Damon was having the same concerns now as he had then, despite the fact that it was over 100 years later and he was now a vampire. It was still weird, no matter how good it felt.

And yet he continued on, removing his brother's shirt and kissing down his bare chest, delighting as Stefan's face contorted in pleasure, loving every shudder that ran through his slim form, the hands that pulled his head back up to meet awaiting lips, tearing him away from the firm chest he was enjoying. Even as the kiss deepened and he began to get lost in the sensation, his mind wouldn't let him forget that this was indeed his baby brother, his sibling's mouth he was invading, Stefan's body he was touching in such inappropriate ways.

Flashes of guilt kept shooting through him as Stefan ripped off his shirt and moved down to attend to his own naked torso. Why was he letting this go on? Gah! What was he doing down there? Perilously close to… oh no. Was he…? Holy shit!

He scrambled away as quickly as possible, crashing into the opposite wall, sinking down to a sitting position, staring in horror at his unbuttoned pants. Was this seriously happening? Why, oh why, was he so damn messed up? He was about to let his brother… no. He didn't let _that_ happen, no matter how much he wanted it to, because some logical part of him knew he couldn't and really didn't want to cross that barrier, because once crossed there was absolutely no going back. Kissing was one thing, sure, a very wrong and terrible thing, but letting it go any farther would be quite dangerous. Brothers didn't do that.

"Uh… Damon?" He heard Stefan ask cautiously while advancing on him, creeping forward to sink down next to him a few feet away, not touching but still a little too close for comfort. There was a hint of pain in his voice. He was hurt. Probably better that way.

And then a hand was resting on his shoulder comforting him. Why was Stefan comforting him? It would be so much easier if he would have run away screaming or just punched him after that initial kiss. But no, they were both screwed up apparently, and Stefan wanted him too. Jesus, this was fucked up.

Only one thing was clear: he couldn't let this happen. As humans they had always managed to get over such incidents, why should anything be different as vampires? Why did they feel so strongly about each other? It had always been like that, as far back as Damon could remember. His feelings for his little brother had always surpassed the norm, though he had never guessed they would manifest in sexual and romantic desires. Everyone had always commented on their closeness as brothers, maybe even been a little suspicious at times, but this was too weird, going a little too far.

And then he knew what he'd have to do: completely break Stefan's heart. Most likely humiliating him in the process. Although he had so recently repaired things with his brother, he didn't want things to be _this_ repaired. Therefore, he had to take action.

He shrugged off the hand rubbing his shoulder lightly, immediately plastering on his best arrogant and malicious smirk, which seemed to catch Stefan off guard.

"I knew it. You really do desire me sexually! Did you think I felt the same way? So gullible, brother."

"W-what?" Stefan spluttered, backing away a little. "N-no! You kissed me on your own first. I'm not an idiot."

"Apparently you are if you actually think your _brother_ wants you. But maybe I should tell Elena, pretty little Elena who chose you, of your true desires." Damon sneered. When Stefan's face crumpled he almost gave in and admitted that he really did want him too, but made himself hold strong, the evil glint in his eyes and vicious grin wavering for only a split second.

"You're lying Damon. You were just as into it as I was. I'm… I'm sure of it. R-right?" God he was pitiful. He looked like he was about to start crying which made Damon's heart melt. But he just stood up, pushing Stefan out of the way and walking out of the room like he didn't give a shit.

"Right. Whatever you need to tell yourself to sleep at night. Just stay away from me."

And with that Damon retreated to the woods where he spent the night, crying himself to sleep.

What had he done?

…

"So do you want to get married?" Elena was saying, rambling on about shit that Stefan could care less about and was only half listening to as he cuddled with her on his bed, nodding and laughing at regular intervals to give the impression that he actually cared. Which he didn't. But the word "married" had indeed caught his attention. Married? Was she psycho? He was in love with his brother for Christ's sake! No he didn't want to marry her.

"I think we should wait a while Elena. That's a little soon, don't you think? Especially after cheating on me with Damon." Yes, he had confronted her about that little tidbit of info. Once again, not that he cared.

In fact, he had been a complete mess since the "incident". He was confused, hurt, and angry at Damon. He had to be lying! And yet he wasn't avoiding him, which would be telltale sign of lying. Instead he just sat around and made embarrassing sexual innuendos, taunted him, and laughed whenever he entered the room. Great. Was it possible to passionately hate and passionately love someone at the same time? Had to be because his brother fell into that category.

"Wait? I guess you're right. I just love you so much and I want to forget about Damon, you know? Just you and me forever."

Yeah. Except you're going to die in a few decades. Then where will I be? Tormented by my demonic brother who just happens to be a sex god as well? Jesus, wish I could figure out if he really likes me back or not.

Oh god. She's fucking kissing me.

Thoughts were running through Stefan's head at the speed of light, flashes of Damon's lips, flashes of Damon's evil smirk as he walked out after having ravished Stefan's body with his kisses, flashes of shirtless Damon. Just flashes of Damon. Elena wasn't really on his mind except wanting her to remove her lips from his and stop this horrible kissing. Because it really was god awful. Damon was much better at this.

Bad Stefan. Do not think of kissing brother. Do not think of brother period. That one's a lost cause. For now.

"What the hell is the matter with you Stefan? Jesus, you're just laying there like a statue!" Elena erupted suddenly, sitting up and staring at him exasperatedly. "You've been like this for days now. What is it? Is it me? I said I was sorry for the Damon thing, okay? I love you and only you."

"No it's not you. Sorry, just a little stressed. Don't worry about it." Stefan assured her, but she just smacked his hand away.

"I'm leaving. Call me if you're back to normal." And then she was gone.

Well shit.

….

This was pure hell. He couldn't stop thinking about Stefan, and it was that damn kiss that set it off. And now he had to pretend to be all indifferent or unaffected or whatever. That was tough work. Especially when it seemed like Stefan was trying to seduce him.

No, it didn't _seem_ like it, he was. Trying to seduce him, that is.

Of course, Stefan didn't fully believe him when he said he did the whole "that kiss was just proving you lust after me" thing. Because it was true, he lusted after Stefan too. There, he'd said it. He dreamt about fucking Stefan last night. Like, legit fucking. It was kind of scary and disturbing and made him feel slightly sick upon waking, but he was damn horny too. So he must've liked it, a realization that brought on a whole new wave of sickness. Gross.

But anyway, Stefan was walking around shirtless a little too much. That was supposed his gig, not his brother's. And yet there he was, roaming the house with his beautifully slim torso bared for the whole world to see. What the fuck was that about? Seduction.

And then all those blushes whenever their eyes would meet? Seduction. Who could resist those beautifully crimson cheeks? Stefan was so cute when he was embarrassed.

How to explain all the "accidental" touches and lingering gazes? Seduction goddammit! And his cover was slowly starting to slip away. The other day Stefan had caught him ogling his ass. And the conniving son of a bitch had done it on purpose too, bending over right in front of him, no shirt of course, sticking his cute little butt right in Damon's face. And he had just stared.

And another time? He had almost kissed him again. He had been doing his usual, fucking with Stefan about his feelings, when he had been surprised by Stefan walking up to him, putting his hands on his shoulders and leaning in to whisper to him to stop. That one breathy whisper of "stop" had been enough to make him lean in farther, practically drooling, eyeing those slightly parted lips as if they were his only chance at life. Sadly none of this escaped Stefan's notice, so when he abruptly pulled out of his brother's grip, mentally cursing himself for being so stupid, Stefan just smirked as if he had won some game, stalking away with a knowing look. Shit.

That had been yesterday. His control was slipping away. Who knew what was going to happen today.


	7. Chapter 7: Wrath Upon Ourselves

Wrath Upon Ourselves

_*** Eek! Sorry it took so long to update but I am really lacking motivation right now and my writing has just been plain shitty lately. But oh well, I finally finished this chapter so please read, enjoy, and leave a review. Maybe that will help with the motivation problem, but no promises there. Until next time…***_

Damon was afraid to get out of bed today. Because of Stefan. Since when had he been intimidated by his pathetic little brother? Oh yeah, since he had started wanting to kiss and undress him. And other things too, but it was best not to delve into those thoughts unnecessarily, especially not when he was already feeling so unstable.

He had never felt this way about anyone before, to be honest, been this distraught over them, possibly because he always got what he wanted. Except for Elena and Katherine of course, but this was different even from wanting them, though he wasn't sure how. With Stefan there was just fiery lust accompanied by a heart wrenching guilt at said lust as well as guilt at lying to him about the existence of the lust.

But it was more than just sexual desire. He actually *gulp* _liked_ Stefan, which was a scary concept to Damon considering he tried to keep his emotions locked inside, struggling to maintain his strength by never letting any weakness in. Love was a weakness, as was evidenced by his current state, shut in his room, too anxious to descend the stairs and face yet another day of Stefan's pained expression or his taunting, seductive glances, or his knowing smiles, the ones that seemed to pierce right through his flimsy disguise of indifference and expose his true feelings. Feelings that he managed to convince himself hadn't reached the "love" stage yet, but were more just in the physically wanting and emotionally "really liking" category. Which was just bullshit, but whatever. It's not like he was ever going to act on his emotions anyway. Which was also probably bullshit. But whatever.

Self-reflection was always Damon's least favorite part of the day anyway, but seeing as he was spending a lot more time alone in the house, he had too much time on his hands. And what did an excess of time equate to? Damn thinking. And thinking may as well be synonymous with self-reflection because that's always what it turned into.

And here we are.

But alas, he wasn't ready to move just yet, so he let his mind wander to Katherine and Elena, both perplexing cases. He had eventually come to the conclusion that he obviously felt something for Stefan while they were still humans. Why else would he have invited his brother to kiss him? At the time it had seemed the nice thing to do, sacrificing himself so his little bro could practice kissing, despite any discomfort he, Damon, might gather from the experience. In hindsight, that was not normal behavior. He should not have been perfectly okay, happy even, that his brother was going to kiss him on the lips. And then it had spiraled into some sort of weird make-out session that he had thankfully put an end to before things got too far, for Stefan wasn't showing any signs of stopping anytime soon.

And then came the realization that he had liked it, a revelation that sufficiently freaked him out. So he pushed the incident from his mind and pretended to forget about it. Until he was about to leave for war, of course, when Stefan looked so sad and before he knew it they were repeating history, all of his previous feelings that he had tried so hard to banish from his memory came rushing to the surface.

It was easier to forget about those things while at war, though, and once again Damon was in the clear, his unnatural feelings for his brother buried deep within. Or lost altogether, as he told himself. It had all been some strange phase, one that he was over. When he was on his way home he was only thinking of seeing Stefan, his brother, and had left that sinful part of their relationship behind entirely. Supposedly.

Then came Katherine, the woman he had convinced himself he loved beyond all belief, the woman who had turned them both into vampires, the woman who had torn them both apart. Only now could Damon see that it was all him, that he had started all the fights and had been the source of all the jealousy. It had been he who ruined their relationship while Stefan always seemed to be saddened by his brother's increasing distance and anger, but was, for the most part, completely understanding of their predicament.

At the time, Damon had felt that Katherine was his world, that he would do anything to have her, that all his jealousy and hatred was directed toward Stefan for trying to steal her away from him. But it was quite obvious now what he had been feeling. He would do anything not to have Katherine, but to have Stefan not have her. Because he was jealous of Katherine. He still saw his little brother as his, Stefan belonged to him, and he didn't want some woman to take him away. He had tried to rationalize it, saying that she was way too mature for Stefan, that she was no good for him, all in an attempt to explain this strange feeling of protectiveness, when in reality it was just possessiveness. And so he made it his responsibility to take Katherine for himself, along the way convincing himself that it was her he loved, not his younger brother.

In the end he only succeeded in causing the both of them to hate each other. But even then he had followed Stefan, "haunting" him throughout eternity. He just couldn't leave his brother alone, couldn't live without him. Because he felt something more for him. Something more than a brotherly affection.

And then had come Lexi. How he'd hated that girl. She had succeeded in replacing him in Stefan's life, the authority figure he went to for advice and help as well as the friend he went to for a good time. Stefan looked up to and admired her, had fun with her, all the things he used to do with Damon, and this caused him immeasurable pain. He convinced himself he hated her because she made Stefan happy and he wanted him to be miserable, but deep down he knew it was because she was closer to his brother than he could ever be anymore, that she knew more about Stefan than he did now. Which was just depressing. And of course the obvious, that Stefan actually liked her and hated Damon. He smiled when he was with Lexi, where when around Damon he either was in constant pain or seething with anger. And therein lies the hatred of a certain blonde vampire, one he killed for the reasons described above.

But then came Elena. He actually did feel something for Elena. She had many personality traits similar to those of Stefan, not surprisingly, including her selflessness, beauty, and overall caring and kind nature. Being with her romantically would also be a lot more acceptable than being with his brother, and by taking her, Stefan would once again be alone and miserable, just how Damon liked to keep him. It would be killing two birds with one stone.

But when he had finally won and Elena was his, Stefan leaving Mystic Falls for good, it struck him that Elena was a pretty poor substitute for his brother, that he really couldn't be replaced at all. Damon couldn't lose Stefan, and was willing to give up Elena a million times over to keep him here. Because he needed him. And that was the first moment that he realized his feelings weren't normal. That was the first time he truly realized he was in love with his brother.

Of course, those feelings only grew with the passage of time and now things were really fucked up. Because apparently Stefan loved him back, or at least lusted for him, which served to complicate things further. And he had rejected him. Yep. He was a regular genius.

….

Stefan decided that it was time to call Elena. Damon seemed intent upon sleeping in as late as possible, which was fine with him, and he was bored. He also didn't want Elena to be mad at him, simultaneously hoping to make Damon jealous.

A part of him still hoped it was Elena he was jealous of, but it had been a few days since their little kissing incident and Damon hadn't slipped up at all. Granted, a few times it seemed he had caught Damon ogling him or leaning in as if to kiss him again, but nothing ever actually happened, and Damon kept up the ruse of indifference perfectly. Stefan had been so sure he was lying, but it appeared he might be wrong again.

Even if he couldn't make Damon jealous of Elena, though, he could still cause some significant pain by flaunting the fact that she'd chosen him, if she was still what Damon wanted. Hell, maybe they could even get married, which would really piss his brother off, although he would be miserable himself.

Yes, despite pretending to be perfectly okay and unaffected, Stefan was hurt. How could his brother do that to him? First getting his hopes up with all that kissing shit and then laughing it off like it was a joke, breaking his heart and humiliating him at the same time? And they had really been bonding as brothers too, finally getting past the century long rift that had been growing between them, until they could actually be considered good friends and close siblings. It was obvious things could never be the same between them again, with the knowledge that Stefan at least lusted after, if not loved, Damon romantically was bound to keep things sufficiently tense and awkward. All of their progress was ruined.

And so he called Elena.

…

Damon was still pondering his own stupidity when he heard Stefan talking on the phone downstairs, laughing and grinning, sounding genuinely… happy. Which was weird because he hadn't heard him sound like that the past few days.

"So, you'll come over? Great!" Was all he managed to catch before he heard Stefan hang up and heave a contented sigh, the same exact one he would give whenever patching things up with Elena. He had known about their most recent tiff, but were they making up already? Stefan was supposed to want _him_!

Throwing the sheets off he stood and made his way out of the bedroom and down the stairs, not bothering to put on a shirt, wearing only his boxers. Trying to keep the scowl off his face, Damon strode into the living room where Stefan sat, smiling like the idiot he was, not even acknowledging his presence until he spoke.

"Who the hell's coming over?"

"Elena."

"I thought you guys weren't getting along." Damon said stiffly, barely managing to keep his irrational anger in check. Why was he so upset? He was the one who turned Stefan away, so what right did he have to be angry that he had crawled back to his girlfriend?

"We _weren't_. I was obviously in an odd frame of mind at the time, but everything's good now. I want to clear things up Damon. I love Elena. Not you. That whole kissing thing the other day was just confusing but I have it all sorted out now and just want things to go back to normal. I don't have feelings for you and I regret the entire incident, so I hope we're alright now." Stefan said with complete sincerity, voice never wavering and gaze never breaking. Damn, it looked like he was actually telling the truth!

"Seriously? You expect me to believe that was all just a fluke?" Damon scoffed, rolling his eyes. On the inside he was freaking out.

"Yeah. I found it hard to believe that you made out with your brother for that long and that passionately all as a way to find out about his feelings for you, but I suppose it's true. What I told you is also true and Elena's coming over. I hope we can put all this behind us and hang out together like we used to, no hard feelings."

"Sure Stef. Anything for you." Damon said with a tight smile, trying to hold in tears that were threatening to spill. Stefan didn't like him in that way and it was all his fault for kissing him in the first place and then rejecting him. Why was he so emotional all of a sudden? Apparently love did that to you. Love sucks.

Stefan gave him a curious look, mouth slightly open as if he wanted to say something, only snapping shut when he heard the door open and Elena walked in.

"Stefan?"

"Elena! Come on in!" He called, releasing the devil into the living room. Okay, devil might be a little harsh but she was definitely closing in on demon territory. Not only did she choose Stefan over himself, she was stealing his brother away from him! She was his competition, and stiff competition at that, considering she had the advantage of being a girl who didn't share his last name. Damn her.

…

An hour. She had only been here an hour and already Damon was ready to rip his hair out, and his hair was not to be messed with unless seriously irritated. Thanks to the genius suggestions of a one Stefan Salvatore, the three of them were all eating lunch together and "chatting". He supposedly wanted to try the whole "brothers" thing again, a scheme where they both pretended they were humans and that they hadn't just had a heated make-out session a few days ago, a world where Damon wasn't extremely jealous and didn't hate Elena with a passion only rivaled by that which he felt for his brother. That kind of a thing.

Maybe the night would have gone better if it hadn't started off on such a poor foot, but alas, as soon as Elena stepped into sight she was kissing Stefan. The only thing holding Damon together at this point was his internal debate on whether to kill her by drinking her blood, possibly spiked with vervain but ultimately more satisfying, or by breaking her neck, a safer option, albeit a much less theatrical one.

By the time he had weighed the pros and cons of each option they had finally separated and Elena was spewing all this shit about how sorry she was for leading him on and how she wanted them to still be friends, as if that was even possible anymore. She was a sly one.

Somewhere in the back of his mind Damon knew all this anger he felt towards Elena stemmed from pure jealousy, but either way, he hated the bitch for good reason. She had played with him and his brother before finally dumping him in favor of the man he loved. And now here she was apologizing as if that was going to magically make it all better. Whatever.

After all the formalities were over, Stefan began to cook lunch, leaving an uncomfortable silence in his absence as Damon and Elena were left alone, sitting on opposite sides of the room as far apart as possible. After a full ten seconds of tension they both stood up and walked to the kitchen in the hopes that Stefan could maintain the façade of a happy gathering of friends.

He was in the midst of chopping some tomatoes and onions to put on sandwiches when they entered, a job that Damon eagerly suggested Elena take over in the hopes that she would cut herself, putting Stefan on edge, ultimately making him break up with her with his typical fear of hurting her because he was a vampire with a blood addiction and she was a rather tempting human being. A tad sadistic? Perhaps, but all's fair in love and war, eh?

He helped Stefan at the stove where he was caramelizing the onions and cooking the meat, purposefully wanting to be as close as possible. Sadly, Elena refrained from cutting herself and she and Stefan continued being sickeningly cute, as they always were after an argument, and he appeared to truly be in love with her again, barely looking at Damon the entire time.

During their fifth little "kiss and cuddle" session, Damon accidentally broke the plate he was carrying when he clenched his hands a little too tightly, causing the shards to cut into his hands and eliciting a whole bunch of odd looks from his brother and his evil girlfriend.

"What the hell's wrong with you Damon?" Stefan asked exasperatedly as he cleaned the broken glass and blood, a little of which had cut Elena. It had been a tiny wound that barely bled enough to warrant a band-aid, but it still pissed his brother off. Damon merely shrugged and gave him the cold shoulder.

And those were the events that brought them to the hour mark, sitting at the table, eating sandwiches that, however loathe to admit it he was, were absolutely delicious. It was pure torture.

"So Damon, what are you guys going to do now that I'm human and Mystic Falls is finally safe?" Elena ventured, attempting to make small talk.

"I don't know about old Stef here, but I'm planning on fucking a whole bunch of girls, probably a few guys too, and then feeding on all your friends and the people of this town you care about, ending with murdering you." He said nonchalantly, only half-kidding. That probably wasn't considered appropriate lunch table conversation.

Elena let out a small forced laugh as Stefan glared at him, reaching over to drape his arm around Elena's shoulders in a protective gesture, giving her a quick peck on the cheek. Damon grimaced and made a gagging motion at this, staring intently at the food on his plate, suddenly not hungry. Not that he was ever really hungry for human food.

When he looked back up, the only two people he'd ever really loved were busy sticking their tongues down each other's throats, which just served to sour his mood even more. Wasn't it rude to do that shit in front of other people? It almost seemed like Elena was trying to show off, prove that she loved Stefan and not him. This verified her bitchiness.

Standing up roughly, Damon let his plate clatter into the sink, stomping out of the room angrily without so much as a second glance. So much for trying to let this whole Stefan thing go.

…

Eventually he heard the front door open and close, signaling Elena's departure, thank god, and Stefan came storming into the room, almost as angry as Damon himself.

"What the fuck Damon? Could you at least try to be civil?" He ranted, pacing around the room. "She doesn't even want to come over here anymore thanks to you."

"Good." Damon said brightly, his spirits brightening a little at this one piece of good news.

"I thought you'd be happy that I moved past that weird phase where I thought I was in love with you. Instead you're trying to sabotage my relationship. So I repeat: what the fuck?"

"I am but Elena fucking dumped me! Do you think I like seeing you sticking your tongue down her throat right in front of me? That was pretty low."

"And what about you and your toys, hmm? I have walked in here to way more than kissing before and it was disgusting! But I always just tolerated it. And you used to be okay with me and Elena kissing in front of you. Why all of a sudden is it so bad that you can't even sit through a twenty minute lunch?" Stefan asked, looking seriously upset.

"My toys weren't people you knew and loved. And it's because I know what a bitch she is now! I care about you Stefan, despite what you may think, and she's just as bad as Katherine, fucking around with the both of us only to choose you in the end. But mark my words, she's not done with me, and then you'll be heartbroken and all that shit. You deserve better." Damon said, standing up to come face to face with his brother.

"You just said you were upset seeing me make out with someone you love and now you're saying you're concerned for me because she's a bitch. Which is it?"

"I'm going with the latter. I did love her at one point but now I think it's time for both of us to move on, let her live her life and let us live ours. Or something like that."

"Whatever. I'm not going to let you sabotage this relationship because you're jealous. I love her so just stay the fuck away from us. Leave for all I care!" Stefan shouted, throwing his hands in the air.

All the anger drained out of Damon, replaced with an utter sadness, causing his eyes to burn with unshed tears that were finally starting to roll down his cheeks. He hated himself for loving Stefan, for pushing him away, for everything he'd ever done, and he turned away in an attempt to hide his tears.

"Damon… are you crying?" Stefan asked quietly, reaching out hesitantly to touch Damon's shoulder.

"N-no." He stuttered, trying to shake off the hand while starting to shudder himself, all to no avail. He struggled to keep his tears under control, but as soon as Stefan turned him around they began to flow again.

"Oh Damon," He sighed, staring into the watery eyes, brushing the drops away with his thumbs, eventually pulling him into a large hug.

Damon buried his face in Stefan's shoulder, tears soaking through the fabric of the shirt quickly as he cried harder, holding him as tightly as possible, twining his fingers in the soft brown hair of his head. He loved his brother so goddamn much, it physically hurt. It hurt to hold him this close, but he needed to smell him right now, needed to feel him.

"I'm s-sorry," He continued to choke out as Stefan shushed him, telling him it was all okay, everything would be fine. Not surprisingly, he was wrong.

….

"I love you Stef." Damon sighed later that night, body pressed into Stefan's.

"I love you too Damon." Stefan finally replied after a moment's hesitation, brushing the hair out of his face as he let his older brother fall asleep in his arms, head nestled in his chest. All Stefan could wonder was how much more fucked up their relationship could get.

He didn't want to know the answer.


End file.
